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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Media Groups Probed by FTC Over Allegedly Coordinating Boycotts
(Bloomberg) -- The US Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether more than a dozen media and advertising groups have illegally colluded to boycott online content alleged to be hateful, false or misleading, according to people familiar with the matter and a document seen by Bloomberg News. Where the Wild Children's Museums Are Billionaire Steve Cohen Wants NY to Expand Taxpayer-Backed Ferry The Economic Benefits of Paying Workers to Move At London's New Design Museum, Visitors Get Hands-On Access LA City Council Passes Budget That Trims Police, Fire Spending The investigation partially relates to litigation between Elon Musk's X and the liberal watchdog group Media Matters For America, but extends far beyond that dispute to include other trade groups, including Interactive Advertising Bureau, World Federation of Advertisers and the news rating company Ad Fontes Media Inc., according to the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. 'No matter what the possible claim the FTC is investigating, we are confident that Ad Fontes Media's business activities are not only proper and lawful, but constitutionally protected,' Vanessa Otero, Ad Fontes chief executive officer, said in a statement. 'So we are dismayed to even receive such a broad and intrusive demand letter in the first place.' A spokesperson for the FTC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Spokespeople for X, IAB and WFA and Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The New York Times first reported details of the investigation. The investigation stems in part from a drop in advertising at X, formerly known as Twitter, after Musk bought the company in late 2022, according to the people. X's advertising business suffered following Musk's $44 billion takeover and his decision to eliminate some rules and policies governing content on the service in the name of promoting free speech. Many advertisers paused or pulled back on spending, and X sued the World Federation of Advertisers in August over the mass exodus. It later added several individual companies as defendants. In May, those companies including Nestle SA, Shell PLC and Abbott Laboratories filed a request to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that they each reacted independently to changes on X without coordinating. Musk and Media Matters are also entangled in similar litigation. Media Matters last week won a ruling by a federal appeals court in Washington rejecting a demand from the state of Texas for its internal records as part of an investigation by the state's attorney general. 'The Trump administration has been defined by naming right-wing media figures to key posts and abusing the power of the federal government to bully perceived opponents and silence critics,' Media Matters President Angelo Carusone said in a statement. 'It's clear that's exactly what's happening here.' As part of its investigation, the FTC is asking for communications between the dozen-plus ad and news industry groups that monitor news sources, websites and other outlets for misinformation, hate speech, false or deceptive content and other similar topics, according to the document viewed by Bloomberg. The FTC is asking whether any content ratings may be 'politically biased,' what methodologies underpin the ratings and for any allegations that they are unreliable, subjective or unscientific, according to the document. FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson has long suggested that he would open such a probe dating back to the end of the Biden Administration, when he was still a minority commissioner. In a December opinion supporting a settlement over an online sneaker seller's misleading terms of service, he called for an investigation into tech platforms 'for banning users and censoring content.' In that opinion he specifically mentioned the alleged advertiser boycott of X and expressed support for Musk's ownership of the social media platform, saying 'its current turn toward free expression is due only to its new owner's unusually firm commitment to free and open debate.' He added that if an 'investigation reveals anti-competitive cartels that facilitate or promote censorship, we ought to bust them up.' YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom Millions of Americans Are Obsessed With This Japanese Barbecue Sauce Mark Zuckerberg Loves MAGA Now. Will MAGA Ever Love Him Back? Trump Considers Deporting Migrants to Rwanda After the UK Decides Not To Will Small Business Owners Knock Down Trump's Mighty Tariffs? ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Media Groups Probed by FTC Over Allegedly Coordinating Boycotts
The US Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether more than a dozen media and advertising groups have illegally colluded to boycott online content alleged to be hateful, false or misleading, according to people familiar with the matter and a document seen by Bloomberg News. The investigation partially relates to litigation between Elon Musk's X and the liberal watchdog group Media Matters For America, but extends far beyond that dispute to include other trade groups, including Interactive Advertising Bureau, World Federation of Advertisers and the news rating company Ad Fontes Media Inc., according to the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren't authorized to speak publicly.
New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
F.T.C. Investigates Ad Groups and Watchdogs, Alleging Boycott Collusion
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether roughly a dozen prominent advertising and advocacy groups violated antitrust law by coordinating boycotts among advertisers that did not want their brands to appear alongside hateful online content, three people familiar with the inquiries said. The inquiry includes the agency's previously reported investigation of Media Matters, a liberal advocacy organization that has published research on hateful and antisemitic content on X, the social media company owned by Elon Musk, along with other advocacy groups and advertising industry organizations. Vanessa Otero, the chief executive of Ad Fontes Media, a media watchdog group, said the organization received a letter from the F.T.C. on May 20 demanding information about its business in relation to an investigation about 'possible collusion.' Nearly a dozen other organizations also received such letters, two people familiar with the matter said. The F.T.C.'s investigation into Media Matters, which is aligned with Democrats, required the organization to share copies of its budgets, documents showing the effects of 'harmful' online content on advertisers and communications with other watchdog groups. Advertisers have cut and frozen spending on X and several other conservative social media platforms in recent years as brands worried about appearing alongside inflammatory content. Mr. Musk, who has been a close adviser to President Trump, sued Media Matters in 2023 over claims that it tried to damage X's relationship with advertisers. That lawsuit continues. The F.T.C. declined to comment, citing its practice of not commenting on active investigations. This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Axios
29-04-2025
- Business
- Axios
Exclusive: News outlets target Madison Ave. with "NewsFronts" event
Stagwell, a publicly-traded ad holding group, will host a new "NewsFronts" event this fall that will highlight advertising opportunities around news content for skeptical marketers on Madison Avenue, its chairman and CEO Mark Penn told Axios. Why it matters: Amid growing polarization, news companies have struggled to convince advertisers that their content is brand safe. That, in conjunction with economic uncertainty, has news executives panicked about the year ahead. "The idea that brands should avoid news is outdated and wrong," Penn said. "Our research shows that advertising in quality news outlets is not only safe — it drives strong brand performance." Zoom in: The new event, slated for Oct. 16 in New York City, is meant to serve as a compliment to the advertising industry's "NewFronts" and "Upfronts" media presentations that occur each spring. The "Upfronts" were created decades ago for TV advertisers to reserve ad placements around fall programming ahead of time. In recent years, digital companies, including streamers, have been added to the mix. Their "NewFronts" presentations typically occur the week before traditional TV companies in early May. Between the lines: Bigger news companies have occasionally stood up their own presentations. Some network news operations are featured as part of bigger presentations by their parent companies. But the Upfronts and NewFronts broadly tend to focus most on new prime-time shows and live sports events, not news. Zoom out: The new event will feature presentations, programming and panel discussions from news outlets that are part of Stagwell's "Future of News" initiative. Stagwell is hoping to secure advertising commitments from brands and ad agencies around news content for the year ahead, the same way bigger publishers look to secure budgets during the Upfronts and Newfronts. Participating publishers include Ad Fontes Media, Associated Press, Axel Springer, Axios, Business Insider, CNN, Gannett, The Guardian US, The Independent, News Corp, Newsweek, The New York Times, Ozone, POLITICO, Press Gazette, The Trade Desk, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Reuters, The Rebooting and 1440. "Launching the Newsfronts in October — after the creative momentum of Cannes Lions and before 2026 budgets are finalized — is well timed to spark critical conversations and ensure that brands prioritize investing in trusted news when it matters most," Penn said. The big picture: Stagwell and Penn launched the "Future of News" initiative last year to educate ad buyers about the benefits of supporting news publishers.
