28 June 2021, London - A series of inflammatory images and
language, in adverts targeted at individuals across the sectarian divide in
Northern Ireland, was approved by Facebook for publication shortly before the
violent riots earlier this year.
This ad was targeted to people in Northern
Ireland who Facebook has profiled as having an interest in Protestantism or the
Catholic Church as well as to people living either side of the peace wall in
west Belfast. Facebook approved this ad for publication.
Going into Facebook’s platform, we submitted political
ads for approval with sectarian slurs that potentially encouraged violent
protests in a way that violated Facebook’s policies. None of the content was