Facebook Removes 'Jew Hater' Ad Category
Facebook might need to rethink their algorithm for ad campaigns. Until recently, the company allowed its advertisers to reach a very specific audience, Jew haters.
After ProPublica informed Facebook about their system, the company then pulled out several anti-Semitic ad categories. Additionally, they promised to improve the system while they continued to monitor it.
Facebook product management director Rob Leathern issued a statement saying that content that violates their standards would often come up on the site. He said that they have removed the targeting fields in question. Moreover, Leathern shared that the company will add more guard rails and review processes to prevent similar issues to pop up in the future.
According to ProPublica the $492 billion company allowed their advertisers to reach people who have shown interest in topics such as "How to burn Jews," "Jew Hater," or "History of why Jews ruin the world."
"Last week, acting on a tip, we logged into Facebook's automated ad system to see if "Jew hater" was really an ad category," ProPublica said. "We found it, but discovered that the category—with only 2,274 people in it—was too small for Facebook to allow us to buy an ad pegged only to Jew haters."
Hence, the system reportedly suggested Second Amendment as an additional category. This would allow advertisers to reach audiences up to 119,000, presumably because its system had correlated gun enthusiasts with anti-Semites.
Prior to this issue, Facebook admitted that they have only recently discovered that $100,000 worth of ads were approved during the 2016 presidential elections. These were made by bogus accounts that have been linked to the Russians.
The target fields are developed through an algorithm which creates categories based on what Facebook users divulge about themselves and what they do online as well.
