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Major companies are silent on Roe v. Wade

The three major tech giants haven’t commented on the landmark ruling that could soon be struck down. But some brands, like Ben & Jerry’s and Yelp, have.
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Roughly three days after confirmation that the Supreme Court will likely strike down Roe v. Wade, according to a draft opinion, corporate America has so far been mostly silent.

Major corporations like Walmart, American Airlines, and Disney (currently embroiled in a different political turmoil), have yet to issue statements or responses, while the Business Roundtable, a trade body representing CEOs, said it “does not have a position on this issue,” reported CNBC.

The three biggest tech companies have also been quiet:

  • Meta hasn’t said anything, though chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg wrote on her personal Facebook page that, “If the leaked draft opinion becomes the law of the land, one of our most fundamental rights will be taken away.”
  • Google declined to respond to Marketing Brew’s email about a statement.
  • Amazon hasn’t commented, but hours before the news broke, it announced that it would reimburse employees (though only those on the company’s insurance) for travel related to “non-life threatening medical treatments including abortions,” according to Reuters, up to $4,000. Other companies, like Citigroup and Yelp, have announced similar policies in response to laws restricting access to abortion in recent months.

Some have spoken out: Ben & Jerry’s, known for taking public stances on political issues, tweeted, “History has shown that no law or court can end abortion, they can only end safe and accessible abortion,” in a thread commenting on the decision. OkCupid, Yelp, and Parade also released statements in support of reproductive rights.

Meanwhile, in ad tech: This week, Vice’s Motherboard reported that the data broker SafeGraph was selling the location data of people who had visited Planned Parenthood and other family planning centers. Motherboard was able to purchase a week’s worth of Planned Parenthood data for just $160. Though SafeGraph’s data is aggregated, researchers consistently say that with just a few data points, individuals can often be identified easily.

After the story was published, SafeGraph said it would no longer sell data related to Planned Parenthood and other family-planning facilities, and that the data it does sell to advertisers is mostly used for “ad assets” like more efficient billboards 🤨.—RB

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Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.