Four of the six largest global advertising agencies, including some who have spent much of the past decade demanding online censorship on social media platforms, have received billions of dollars from the federal government, according to a new report.
The advertising industry, through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), has been seeking to pressure social media companies to limit conservative media since 2019, Foundation for Freedom Online reported Thursday.
GARM is a project of the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), which accounts for about 90% of ad spending worldwide.
The four agencies, IPG, Omnicom, WPP, and Publicis Groupe, were shown to have received U.S. taxpayer dollars through federal contracts, according to a review of federal contract data by the Foundation for Freedom Online.
A recent report by the House Judiciary Committee revealed that GARM had used its influence over internet revenue streams to pressure platforms hosting controversial speech, revealing that in a number of cases, it punished sites or platforms deviating from speed deemed safe for ad brands.
These included threats against Twitter (now X), Spotify, and non-establishment media, the report showed.
In the case of Twitter/X, a collective boycott ordered because of owner Elon Musk's decision to relax content moderation led GARM members to brag about taking on the billionaire and dropping X's earnings "80% below revenue forecasts."
Members of GARM's team also put pressure on Spotify over its decision to support top podcast host Joe Rogan after he hosted guests who were skeptical of the government's COVID policies.
The steering team also advised Coca-Cola that Spotify and Rogan were "a major area of concern."
GARM members also "closely watched" non-mainstream media to find ways to threaten to withdraw ad dollars, the report said.
GARM specifically targeted two sites, Breitbart News and The Daily Wire.
Meanwhile, the report said showed GARM was allegedly collaborating with NewsGuard, a news rating service, as well as the Global Disinformation Index in England, both of which blacklist news sources using "ratings" that are deemed unfavorable.
Publicis is an investor in NewsGuard and uses its services to block advertising revenue for conservative media.
NewsGuard is headed by Steven Brill, a long-time Democratic party operative and donor who has backed Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, among many liberal candidates.
The federal dollar breakdown of backing agencies that use left-wing media monitors include:
Publicis Groupe subsidiary Plowshare Group LLC, which holds a $394.2 million contract with the Department of Health and Human Services for the national tobacco education campaign operated through the Centers for Disease Control.
The contract, which is to expire in 2025, has spent $201.8 million.
Sapient Government Solutions and OnPoint consulting, companies that specialize in winning government contracts, are Publicis subsidiaries that have gotten hundreds of millions over time from government agencies, the report noted.
Omnicom subsidiary DDB Chicago Inc., has a $4 billion contract over a decade to run the U.S. Army's marketing account. Its subsidiary, Ketchum, has a $247 million contract with HHS for outreach for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. GSD&M Idea City LLC, another Omnicom subsidiary, GSD&M Idea City LLC, has a $741 million U.S. Air Force contract for recruitment ads.
Interpublic Group (IPG) subsidiary DXTRA Inc. has HHS contracts worth over $1.1 billion, while IPG subsidiary MullenLowe Global has a $454 million for the Department of Defense's Joint Advertising, Market Research & Studies program.
WPP subsidiary VMLY&R has a five-year contract, $455 million contract with the U.S. Navy.
Another WPP subsidiary, Wunderman Thompson, has been producing ads for the U.S. Marines.
Meanwhile, NewsGuard, has received $750,000 in Pentagon funding.
Low scores from the company are reportedly intended to cut news sites out of billions in ad revenues, the report noted.
Publicis Groupe plays a role with NewsGuard, including with Steve King, the head of the Europe division, serving on the NewsGuard board of directors.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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