Pepsi reportedly joined the advertising boycott that several companies are taking against Facebook, people close to the matter. he told Fox Business Sunday.
The world’s second-largest food and beverage company is reportedly pulling Facebook ads through July and August as part of a “global boycott,” sources told Fox Business. Pepsi has yet to make an official announcement on the matter.
The Pepsi boycott could have a huge impact due to its sheer size, as it is reported to spend up to $ 2.6 billion each year on marketing, promotion and advertising, the news outlet noted. Like most companies, Pepsi is spending an increasing portion of its advertising on social media websites.
Facebook has been consistently criticized for not taking sufficient steps to remove or address hate speech or comments deemed inappropriate. As of Sunday, more than 150 companies, including Ben and Jerry’s and Patagonia, openly expressed their concerns about the platform and promised to withdraw their Facebook ads.
Advertising agency Goodby Silverstein announced last week that it would join the boycott against Facebook and is urging clients like Adobe, HP, PayPal and BMW to do the same. Pepsi is also one of the agency’s clients, according to Fox Business.
“We will join # StopHate4Profit and stop posting on @Facebook for the month of July,” the agency tweeted. “We are taking this step to protest the irresponsible spread of the platform for hate speech, racism and misleading voter information.”
We will join # StopHate4Profit and stop posting on @Facebook for the month of July. We are taking this step to protest the irresponsible spread of hate speech, racism, and misleading voter information. We encourage clients and our own people to join us.
– Goodby Silverstein (@GSP) June 24, 2020
Meanwhile, other companies like starbucks and Coca-Cola have said their boycotts will apply to all social media platforms.
Pepsi and Facebook did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Recent criticism of Facebook came when President Trump
Donald John Trump Four men accused of trying to tear down Andrew Jackson statue in DC Video shows retired workers signs of social estrangement ahead of Trump Tulsa rally: WaPo Biden criticizes Trump for failing to sanction Russia for the intelligence of the “rewards” of Afghan militants MORE said on social media when protests erupted over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody “When the looting begins, the shooting begins.”
Twitter decided to tag the president’s tweet with a warning that he was “glorifying violence” hours after it was published.
Facebook makes about $ 1 billion a quarter in advertising, and shares of the social media platform fell more than 8 percent on Friday as more companies joined the boycott, according to Fox Business.
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