YouTube has moved to make it a financial loser for creators who upload anti-vaccination videos on the platform.
The Google-backed company has responded to a recent BuzzFeed article on its Up Next algorithm by removing ads on anti-vax content.
The decision comes against a political backdrop in which lawmakers are urging tech giants such as Facebook to address the issue.
“We have strict policies that govern what videos we allow ads to appear on, and videos that promote anti-vaccination content are a violation of those policies,” a spokesman told Fox News via email on Monday. “We enforce these policies vigorously, and if we find a video that violates them, we immediately take action and remove ads.”
An identical statement on “dangerous and harmful” content was released to BuzzFeed Friday.
Several advertisers pulled ads from anti-vax videos after a BuzzFeed article was published Feb. 20.
Similar measures have been taken at Pinterest, which has roughly 250 million active monthly users.
“We want Pinterest to be an inspiring place for people, and there’s nothing inspiring about misinformation,” a spokesperson told Fox via email. “That’s why we continue to work on new ways of keeping misleading content off our platform and out of our recommendations engine.”
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.