Veterans Ministry Says YouTube Blocked Their Ad Because it Included the Word ‘Christian’
A Christian speaker and former Special Operations marine says YouTube has censored an ad for his ministry to veterans.
Chad Robichaux said the word “Christian” was deemed a violation of YouTube’s policy. The notice from YouTube said, “The following keywords violate Google Ads advertising policies. Please remove the unacceptable content to continue.”
The word identified was “Christian.”
“We ran a @YouTube ad for our veterans ministry outreach for those in need & it was denied for the word “Christian,” Robichaux wrote on his Twitter account. “Insane! #Censorship should terrify every American; conservative or liberal, Christian or Muslim. This bias is a dangerous course for America,” he added.
We ran a @YouTube ad for our veterans ministry outreach for those in need & it was denied for the word “Christian”. Insane! #Censorship should terrify every American; conservative or liberal, Christian or Muslim. This bias is a dangerous course for America. @MightyOaksFDN pic.twitter.com/at5CsAfEht
— Chad Robichaux (@ChadRobo) July 23, 2019
Robichaux, who heads the Mighty Oaks Foundation, said he tested the Google Ad by trying to use the word “Muslim.” Unlike the word “Christian,” Robichaux said that the word “Muslim” was accepted.
“That said, Muslim or any religious belief should be approved equally,” he said. “Yet, clearly a bias.”
He told Breitbart News that censoring the word “Christian” is “absolutely crippling.”
YouTube responded to these allegations noting that they do not allow advertisers to target people based on their religious affiliations.
YouTube wrote on Twitter, “We know that religious beliefs are personal, so we don’t allow advertisers to target users on the basis of religion. Beyond that, we don’t have policies against advertising that includes religious terms like ‘Christian’.”
We know that religious beliefs are personal, so we don’t allow advertisers to target users on the basis of religion. Beyond that, we don’t have policies against advertising that includes religious terms like “Christian”.
— TeamYouTube (@TeamYouTube) July 24, 2019
Robichaux expressed the impact of these restrictions with Breitbart News, noting that it restricts people from being made aware of a “lifesaving outreach.”
He said, “These restrictions and bias may not seem like much to an outsider, or those who don’t rely on digital media to reach audiences, but for us, we are being restricted from sharing a lifesaving outreach to those who desperately need our help.”
He also told the outlet that this isn’t the first time he’s been denied certain words and comments through social media sites.
“First and foremost, posts about issues that our veterans are facing had been declined many times for Facebook ‘boosts,’ and classified as political issues of national importance, when our posts have no political alignment to the left or right, our only alignment is with our nation’s veterans and the military community,” he said.
According to Robichaux, the Mighty Oaks Foundation has served more than 100,000 active duty military.
Photo courtesy: Christian Wiediger/Unsplash
Comments are closed.