Fake Abortion Clinics in Google Ads, State of the Union Takeaways, and Crypto’s Isolated Meltdown
View this email in your browser ([link removed])
** CfA's February 10, 2023 Newsletter
------------------------------------------------------------
With your support, Campaign for Accountability is working to expose corruption and hold the powerful accountable.
** This Week's Updates:
------------------------------------------------------------
New TTP Report: How Google Helps Fake Abortion Clinics Target Low-Income Women
On Tuesday, CfA’s Tech Transparency Project (TTP) released a new report ([link removed]) revealing how Google has helped crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) disproportionately serve search ads to low-income women. CPCs have a history of targeting ([link removed]) this demographic, and of engaging in misleading practices to mimic actual abortion clinics. After creating Google test accounts in three different US cities, TTP assigned them to a range of income brackets in Google’s ad personalization settings. When these test accounts searched terms like “abortion clinic near me,” the low-income users generally received a much higher volume of advertisements for CPCs – in one city, 56% of the ads show to a low-income user were for CPCs, while a high-income user received only 7%.
CfA Executive Director Michelle Kuppersmith said, “Google’s situation with anti-abortion clinic ads is a mess. Some of these “clinics” are using Google search ads in a way that clearly violates Google’s policies against misrepresentation; in other cases, Google itself is failing to label these ads properly. While lower-income women may be the primary targets for fake clinics, the fact is that anyone who uses Google search for abortion information may be subject to deception.”
TTP’s report was covered by The Guardian ([link removed]) , which reached out to Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and Senator Mark Warner for comment.
Congresswoman Slotkin said, “We sent a second letter in November because Google was still failing to consistently apply disclaimers to misleading ads. Despite our action – and assurance from Google that they would only show verified abortion providers when a woman was seeking the procedure – these findings from TTP [Tech Transparency Project] prove there’s clearly more work that needs to be done.”
Senator Warner said, “Ads from ‘crisis pregnancy centers’ that reference ‘Free Abortion Help’ or ‘Abortion Consultation’ are obviously not in compliance with Google ads policies that forbid ads ‘that deceive users by excluding relevant product information or providing misleading information’. I urge Google to take action to prevent these deceptive advertising practices meant to trick users, especially low-income women.”
Biden’s State of the Union Takes Aim at Corporate Exploitation, Big Tech
On Tuesday Night, President Biden used his State of the Union address ([link removed]) to call out “capitalism without competition,” planting a flag for antitrust actions in a range of sectors, from publishing and home improvement to digital ads and defense contracting. The President also criticized social media companies for “the experiment they are running on our children,” leaving young people to navigate platforms designed to maximize engagement without serious regard for user safety.
Crypto’s Isolated Meltdown
Cryptocurrencies and crypto exchanges have been rocked by instability, leaving investors bankrupt and scaring off the celebrities ([link removed]) who were once eager to promote decentralized finance. Rather than infecting the US economy, however, the crypto crash has remained relatively isolated. Strong banking regulations protected the US financial system from wider fallout, while loopholes created by weakened FDIC deposit rules under the Trump administration helped banks like Silvergate ([link removed]) take on risky crypto deposits. These outcomes underscore the importance of independent regulators – if the crypto industry had gotten its way, the economic consequences of the crash could have been much more severe.
** What We're Reading:
------------------------------------------------------------
US experts warn AI likely to kill off jobs – and widen wealth inequality ([link removed])
Congress considers federal aviation oversight after near collisions ([link removed])
Federal official warns $191 billion in covid unemployment aid may have been misspent ([link removed])
** Follow Our Work:
------------------------------------------------------------
We thank you for your continued support. Without people like you, our work would not be possible.
Here is how you can stay involved and help us accomplish our mission:
1. Follow CfA on Twitter ([link removed]) .
2. Follow the Tech Transparency Project on Twitter ([link removed]) .
3. Tell your friends and colleagues ([link removed]) about CfA.
4. Send us a tip ([link removed]) .
5. Make a tax-deductible donation ([link removed]) .
Be on the lookout for more updates about our work in the upcoming weeks. Thanks again for signing up to be a part of CfA!
Sincerely,
Michelle Kuppersmith
Executive Director, Campaign for Accountability
============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2023 Campaign for Accountability, All rights reserved.
You signed up for this list at campaignforaccountability.org
Our mailing address is:
Campaign for Accountability
611 Pennsylvania Ave SE
#337
Washington, District Of Columbia 20003
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.
Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp
[link removed]
