"Head of Google Europe apologises over ads on extremist content", 20 Mar 2017

Google’s European chief has publicly apologised after online adverts for major brands appeared next to extremist material, but declined to say whether the company would begin actively seeking out such content and taking action against it... Brittin told an audience of advertising industry figures that the company would improve its ad placement system.... The ads help fund payments to the people who post the videos... “It isn’t enough for Google to respond only when their advertising revenues take a hit...They can afford to do far more, far faster to deal with illegal and hate-filled content online” [Yvette Cooper, UK Labour MP, said]. Google executives have been summoned to the Cabinet Office later this week to explain...what they plan to do... The government and several high-profile companies have suspended adverts... [including] Marks & Spencer, McDonald’s, ...BBC, L’Oréal, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds, ...Guardian, Audi and Channel 4. Brittin’s public apology comes after he was urged to do so by...GroupM, part of...advertising group WPP. [Brittin]...pointed out that [Google] handles a huge volume of content, including 400 hours of YouTube video uploaded every minute. [Also refers to Unilever].