Hulu’s “unwritten policy” on political censorship sparks backlash

Hulu’s “unwritten policy” on political censorship sparks backlash

a year ago
Anonymous $33nAR-2OaA

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2022/07/hulus-unwritten-policy-on-political-censorship-sparks-backlash/

Last year, Hulu raised its ad-supported subscriptions by a dollar, shortly after prompting subscribers to submit more feedback on ads. Since 2017, vocal members in the Hulu community have complained about seeing the same political ads “1,000 times,” with some claiming they were repeatedly served ads from Republicans that spread misinformation. After President Biden was elected in 2020, others complained about “Democratic propaganda.” Many suggested Hulu wasn’t the place for political ads, with one post pitching a new Hulu policy of “no political ads” getting more than 2,000 votes.

At least one subscriber in the forum claimed that regardless of content, Hulu was financially motivated to sell political ads, but this week Hulu has taken actions that seemingly respond to subscribers' longtime complaints—by blocking more political ads. Democrats have claimed that Hulu blocked political ads discussing key party issues like abortion rights, gun control, and climate change, sparking an entirely different backlash and a Twitter rally cry to #BoycottHulu.