PATTY MURRAY, WASHINGTON, CHAIR
BERNARD SANDERS (I), VERMONTROBERT P. CASEY, JR., PENNSYLVANIATAMMY BALDWIN, WISCONSINCHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, CONNECTICUTTIM KAINE, VIRGINIAMARGARET WOOD HASSAN, NEW HAMPSHIRETINA SMITH, MINNESOTA
JACKY ROSEN, NEVADABEN RAY LUJÁN, NEW MEXICOJOHN HICKENLOOPER, COLORADO

RICHARD BURR, NORTH CAROLINARAND PAUL, KENTUCKYSUSAN M. COLLINS, MAINE
BILL CASSIDY, LOUISIANALISA MURKOWSKI, ALASKAMIKE BRAUN, INDIANAROGER MARSHALL, KANSASTIM SCOTT, SOUTH CAROLINA
MITT ROMNEY, UTAHTOMMY TUBERVILLE, ALABAMAJERRY MORAN, KANSAS

United States Senate
COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION,LABOR, AND PENSIONSWASHINGTON, DC 20510–6300

EVAN T. SCHATZ, STAFF DIRECTORDAVID P. CLEARY, REPUBLICAN STAFF DIRECTOR
http://help.senate.gov

January 25, 2022
Mr. Mark Zuckerberg
Chairman and Chief Executive OfficerMeta
1 Hacker Way
Menlo Park, California 94025
Dear Mr. Zuckerberg:
Over the past several years, a series of reports have described a pattern of Facebook andInstagram restricting access to women’s health information. A new report has now found that
Facebook and Instagram block advertisements providing information on women’s health andsexual health, while allowing often graphic, sexual content targeted at men. I therefore request
you explain Meta’s uneven application of its advertising policies and the steps you will take toimmediately address this double standard.
According to a report from the Center for Intimacy Justice, Facebook and Instagram regularly
reject advertisements for products, services, and information serving the health needs of womenand people of diverse genders. 1 Based on a study of 60 companies, Facebook and Instagram haveblocked ads from every organization surveyed on topics including consent education,breastfeeding, pelvic pain, incontinence, menopause, endometriosis, and other issues critical towomen’s health. Facebook reportedly suspended half the surveyed companies’ entire ad
accounts, often with little explanation or recourse.
Additionally, it appears Facebook applies its advertising policies unevenly depending on thegender of the target audience. According to the report and subsequent press coverage, inrejecting ads, Facebook often cited its policies that bar “adult products or services” and “adultcontent,” including “nudity” or “explicit or suggestive” depictions, when rejecting ads related towomen’s health. 2 However, despite Facebook regularly blocking women’s health information,
graphic ads targeting men—many with suggestive imagery or language on sexual performance orpleasure—were allowed.
This is not the only time Meta has been accused of inappropriately blocking women’s healthinformation. In September, reporting revealed that Facebook and Instagram hid posts pertaining
https://docsend.com/view/phfstt65wzta5nw7
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/11/style/facebook-womens-sexual-health-advertising.html;
https://docsend.com/view/phfstt65wzta5nw7;
https://www.facebook.com/policies/ads/prohibited_content/adult_content;
https://www.facebook.com/policies/ads/prohibited_content/adult_products_or_services

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to mifepristone and misoprostol, medications used in abortion care. 3 In December, there were
new reports that Facebook’s advertising enforcement restricts access to information on abortion
related care. 4 In response to several of these incidents, Facebook pointed to “mistakes” in its
moderation process. 5 However, these actions point to a pattern of stifling access to information
on women’s health and sexual health, without any clear steps taken to address this self-described
series of mistakes on your platforms.
Social media is often a critical tool for learning and sharing information, including healthinformation. By preventing access to women’s health content, I am concerned Meta is actively
preventing many of its users, especially women, from getting access to information that could
support their health and well-being. To ensure you are applying your policies evenly andallowing access to health content across its platforms, I request you provide answers to thefollowing questions no later than February 8, 2022.
1. Please provide any policies and procedures pertaining to:a. The acceptance or rejection of advertisements for Facebook and Instagram,including the appeals process.
b. The review of advertisements after they are posted to Facebook or Instagram,including in response to reports by users.
c. The suspension of companies’ advertisement accounts, including the appeals
process.
2. Which portions of these review processes involve automated tools or algorithms, andwhich portions involve review by Facebook or Instagram employees? Do all submitted
advertisements undergo review by a Facebook or Instagram employee?
3. What training do employees receive pertaining to the advertisement review process,including on Facebook’s policies on Adult Products and Services and Adult Content, as
well as on women’s health, sexual health, and reproductive health?
a. How often do reviewers receive this training?
b. Please provide copies of any materials used during such trainings.
4. How does Meta track information on acceptance or rejection of advertisements for
Facebook or Instagram, including on the basis of certain policies, pertaining to particularsubject matter, and targeted toward particular genders?
a. For each of the past three years, please provide the number of advertisements
pertaining to Adult Products and Services or Adult Content submitted, accepted,
or rejected by Facebook or Instagram, including the gender of the target audienceand the subject matter of each ad. For rejected ads, please also include thegrounds for the rejection, which rejections were appealed, and the results of thisappeal.

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/facebook-instagram-block-posts-abortion-pills-texas-law/https://www.yahoo.com/now/abortion-rights-groups-tech-giants-110101279.html
5 https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/11/style/facebook-womens-sexual-health-advertising.html;
https://www.dailydot.com/debug/facebook-instagram-block-posts-abortion-pills-texas-law/3425. For each of the past three years, please provide the minimum, maximum, and average
length of time for the appeals process for advertisements initially rejected on the basis of
the Adult Products and Services or Adult Content policies.
6. What steps, if any, does Meta take to determine if there is gender bias in its moderationof advertisements and other content on Facebook or Instagram?
a. What steps, if any, does Meta take to determine if there are common issues in its
moderation of content pertaining to women’s health and sexual health acrossadvertisements and other content?
b. Please provide any analyses of potential gender bias in Meta’s policy enforcement
practices over the past three years, as well as any steps the company has taken toaddress these issues.
7. How do Facebook and Instagram communicate with potential advertisers to communicate
the reasons for rejecting advertisements, including small businesses and organizations
offering products, services, and information pertaining to women’s health and sexualhealth?
8. What steps, if any, has Meta taken in response to this latest report regarding Facebookand Instagram inappropriately blocking advertisements for products, services, andinformation pertaining to women’s health and sexual health, including potential genderbias in the review process?
Please direct any questions and response to this letter to Yelena Tsilker on my staff at
Yelena_Tsilker@help.senate.gov.
I appreciate your timely attention to this issue.
Sincerely,____________________________PATTY MURRAY
Chair
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions

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