Earlier this month, a gunman allegedly inspired by a white supremacist conspiracy theory shot up a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, killing ten people. And, as usual after a tragedy like this occurs, experts have turned to social media to figure out if the perpetrator may have been inspired by content he discovered there. Alarmingly, one nonprofit group discovered many ads promoting the theory that inspired the gunman — while generating revenue for the social media giant.

“In our latest study, we found that Facebook has profited from at least 50 ads from right-wing political candidates pushing the racist rhetoric, and there were hundreds of posts with similar rhetoric from right-wing media outlets.” the group wrote in its report.

Of course, Facebook must try to walk the line between censorship and respecting free speech, and there are often gray areas when it comes to advertisements. Also, the company is extra sensitive when it comes to right-wing issues, as it is often accused of stifling conservative opinion. However, there’s no debate that Facebook needs to do a better job of policing offensive content on its platform, and at the very least, the company should not be directly profiting from it.

Recommended Resources

The Choice of Tech Experts Worldwide. Try 90 days free of Bitdefender and experience the highest level of digital safety.

Surf the web truly incognito. Try Bitdefender Premium VPN, the ultra-fast VPN that keeps your online identity and activities safe from hackers, ISPs and snoops.

System Mechanic 14 – Make your computer run like new. Winner of 200+ Editor’s Choice awards!