Samsung And Heinz’s Advertising Next to Fake ‘Cancer Cure’ Videos On You Tube

Samsung, Heinz’s, YouTube

YouTube has become embroiled in a fresh ad safety scandal following revelations that brands including Samsung, Grammarly, and Kraft Heinz have seen their advertisements displayed alongside fake cancer cure videos. The uncomfortable ad placement runs the risk of tarnishing brand image while imparting sheen of credibility to the misleading and unproven ‘cures.’

Presented with evidence from BBC Monitoring Samsung stressed that it had ‘no connection or correlation’ with the dubious content, adding that it ‘… follows and insists on the highest brand safety guidelines on all advertising platforms…’

Kraft Heinz meanwhile stated that it was ‘concerned’ at such associations and had already taken steps to block identified channels. A spokesperson for Grammarly responded: “Upon learning of this, we immediately contacted YouTube to pull our ads from any such channels and to ensure the ads will not appear alongside content promulgating misinformation.”

A Google spokesperson stated: “Misinformation is a difficult challenge … Our systems are not perfect but currently, the majority of the searches about cancer cures are pointing users to authoritative sources.”

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