AppNexus is a technology and programming company that also acts as one of the highest-grossing ad networks for news websites. Bloomberg reported on a statement from AppNexus spokesman Joshua Zeitz, who said that after a company audit on Breitbart, they have concluded that the outlet has repeatedly violated their code of conduct.
“We did a human audit of Breitbart and determined there were enough articles and headlines that cross that line, using either coded or overt language.”
Breitbart is a highly-conservative news agency that has drawn criticism from those who say that it perpetuates anti-semitism, white nationalism, and various sentiments favored by the alt-right. The site has remained a point of discussion after its controversial former chief, Steve Bannon, was selected to become chief strategist to President-elect Donald Trump.
Zeitz insisted that the ban wasn’t politically-motivated or an attack on news with an ideological bent. He also said that Breitbart’s domain can be restored
Zeitz elaborated on the matter further in a discussion with the BBC:
“We use a number of third-party standards to determine what is and isn’t hate speech, and if we detect a pattern of speech that could incite violence or discrimination against a minority group, we determine that to be non-compliant and we simply won’t serve ads against it.”
Larry Solov, Breitbart Chief Executive Officer, put out an emailed response saying that the website “always and continues to condemn racism and bigotry in any form.”
[Image via screengrab]
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