Facebook agrees to prevent discriminatory advertising

Facebook can no longer block minorities or other groups from seeing advertisements, according to an agreement with Washington state. Facebook signed a binding agreement to modify its advertising platform so third parties can’t discriminate based on ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation, according to Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson. Facebook must make the changes nationwide within 90 days, according to Ferguson’s office. Will Castleberry, Facebook vice president of state and local policy, said the company worked closely with Ferguson’s office to reach the agreement. “Discriminatory advertising has no place on our platform, and we’ll continue to improve our ad products so they’re relevant, effective, and safe for everyone,” he said. Washington state started investigating Facebook’s advertising practices after ProPublica published an article alleging advertisers could exclude users by race.