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Coca-Cola Halts Social Media Ads Amid Facebook Boycott

The beverage giant joins a growing chorus of companies fleeing Facebook for a month.

Coca-Cola has announced a 30-day pause on social media advertising as more and more companies join in a Facebook boycott over what many see as lax policing of hate speech on the platform. Although Coca-Cola stressed that it did not intend to participate in the boycott, the company said it plans to “reassess” its advertising policies over the next few weeks. “There is no place for racism in the world and there is no place for racism on social media,” Coca-Cola CEO and Chairman James Quincey said in a statement. “We also expect greater accountability and transparency from our social media partners,” he said. The moratorium begins July 1st. Unilever on Friday became one of the latest brands to boycott advertising on Facebook, following in the footsteps of Verizon, Patagonia, The North Face, Hershey’s, and Eddie Bauer. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg did not comment directly on the boycott but said Friday that the social media giant would begin placing warnings on misleading posts by public figures.