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Advertisers are pulling ads from Alex Jones’ YouTube channel

Advertisers are pulling ads from Alex Jones’ YouTube channel

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Many companies were unaware that their ads were appearing on the channel

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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Last week, YouTube said that some of the warnings and bans handed down to some right-wing channels might have been mistakes from human moderators, but despite the walk back, some companies have begun pulling ads from Infowars’ The Alex Jones Channel.

CNN reports that numerous companies, including Nike, Moen, Expedia, Acer, ClassPass, Honey, Alibaba, and OneFamily, have pulled their ads after learning that their ads were running on Jones’ channel.

Jones has risen to notoriety in recent years for his conspiracy theories, saying that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut was a hoax, and more recently, suggesting without proof that some of the survivors of the recent shooting at the Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida were “crisis actors.”

According to CNN, the companies purchased ads that “broadly targeted demographics and user behavior,” and several have contacted YouTube directly about the ad placements. Several reported that they had opted for several filters that would have prevented ads from being run on certain categories. Advertisers can also prevent ads from being run on specific channels.

The shooting and its aftermath have led some companies to pause their advertising and support of the National Rifle Association, such as software giant Symatec, Delta, and United.