PlayStation Ditches Facebook And Instagram As Boycott Grows

Sony's PlayStation is the latest major company to ditch Facebook and Instagram, at least temporarily. The company has joined an ongoing boycott that will involve suspending advertisements on the platform during the month of July. In this case, PlayStation has confirmed that it will suspend all of its activity on both social media websites, including sharing non-paid content.

Facebook is the subject of an ongoing boycott called "#StopHateForProfit" that was organized by the Anti-Defamation League. The aims of the boycott are simple: to get advertisers, particularly big ones, to suspend their advertisements on Facebook's platforms during the month of July. Facebook heavily relies on advertisements for revenue, so the boycott aims to strike where the company is sensitive.

The organizers criticize Facebook for its alleged inaction and allowance of hate speech on the platform, a view fueled by statements made by company CEO Mark Zuckerberg in recent weeks. In addition to hate content on the site, Facebook is also accused of turning 'a blind eye to blatant voter suppression' on its platform.

A number of advertisers have joined the boycott, including major ones like Unilever and Coca-Cola, the latter of which is pausing all of its social media advertising. The latest to join the list is PlayStation, as first reported by Games Industry, though neither it nor Sony are currently listed on the official boycott website at this time.

In a statement to the publication, the PlayStation team said that it is supporting the #StopHateForProfit boycott and that it will stop its Facebook and Instagram activity around the globe during the month of July as a result. This covers both advertisements and non-paid content.