Advertisers turn their backs on YouTube because of hate videos - now also in Switzerland
After more than 250 companies in the UK have already stopped their advertising on the Google platform because it appeared alongside extremist videos, the first Swiss companies are now following suit. These steps were initiated by the 10 to 10 program on Tuesday.
Most recently, the American telecom giants Verizon and AT&T, among others, declared that they would stop advertising on Google outside of the search engine for this reason. Google announced that it would give advertisers more control over where their ads are shown.
Companies - and the British government - became aware of the problem last week following a report in the Times of London. According to the report, the BBC, consumer goods giant Johnson & Johnson, Ford, VW, Toyota and the bank JP Morgan Chase, among others, suspended ads on YouTube. As the British newspaper The Guardian reports, Havas has also suspended its clients' Google and YouTube advertising in the UK, writes 10 to 10 in a summary of the Broadcast.
10 vor 10 took up the topic and conducted research in Switzerland. The results of this research were broadcast on Tuesday: The advertising of various Swiss companies also appears before or alongside questionable content. The first companies have already reacted, including Swisslife and Baer. According to 10 to 10, Sunrise and Electrolux are also considering withdrawing their ads if Google cannot drastically minimize the risk of incorrect placements.
The core of the problem is that the advertising space around YouTube videos is largely filled automatically via various marketplaces. In principle, Google can assure advertisers that their ads will not appear next to extremist content, said CEO Eric Schmidt in a television interview on Fox Business TV. However, as the ad spaces are marketed across many channels, "sometimes someone slips under the algorithm". As a consequence, Google has tightened its guidelines and is using more human control. (red./SDA)
Picture: 10 before 10/SRF
