Outside of users complaining about the difficulty of navigating Snapchat’s most recent update, the social media platform landed itself in more hot water. The company has apologized for posting an advert that seemingly “makes light of domestic violence” in the app.
I know that social media ads go through an approval process from the platform.
This means @Snapchat approved an ad that makes light of domestic violence.
The update ain’t the only thing that’s wack over there, friends. https://t.co/PmbJn4zCel
— Brittany Packnett (@MsPackyetti) March 12, 2018
On March 12 many users began to critique Snap for a tone-deaf advertisement which posed the question if users would “rather slap Rihanna or punch Chris Brown.” The ad comes off as a humorous way to reference the domestic violence incident that happened between the two stars in 2009. Brown was convicted of assaulting Rihanna in his car while the former couple was en route to that year’s Grammy Awards. A horrific photo of Rihanna’s injuries would go viral soon after that. The “Man Down” singer reportedly wants to make peace with Breezy.
In a statement to Newsbeat, Snapchat said the ad was published “in error” in the United States and was removed immediately upon discovering the mistake.
Within the terms and conditions, there is a list of banned content and a review process for ads. It reads in part:
“All ads are subject to our review and approval. We reserve the right to reject or remove any ad in our sole discretion for any reason. We also reserve the right to request modifications to any ad, and to require factual substantiation for any claim made in an ad.”
The ad violated the companies own guidelines. “The advert was reviewed and approved in error, as it violates our advertising guidelines. We immediately removed the ad last weekend, once we became aware,” the company said.
Ultimately they added, “We are sorry that this happened.”
