Machine Bias
Investigating Algorithmic Injustice
Investigating algorithmic injustice and the formulas that influence our lives.
Featured
Facebook Won’t Let Employers, Landlords or Lenders Discriminate in Ads Anymore
The sweeping changes come two years after ProPublica’s reporting, which sparked lawsuits and widespread outrage.
Despite Disavowals, Leading Tech Companies Help Extremist Sites Monetize Hate
Most tech companies have policies against working with hate websites. Yet a ProPublica survey found that PayPal, Stripe, Newsmax and others help keep more than half of the most-visited extremist sites in business.
Other Entries
Facebook Finally Agrees to Eliminate Tool That Enabled Discriminatory Advertising
Six years after ProPublica revealed that Facebook allowed advertisers to exclude Black users and others, the company agreed to a settlement with the Justice Department to overhaul its ad algorithm system.
Facebook Ads Can Still Discriminate Against Women and Older Workers, Despite a Civil Rights Settlement
New research and Facebook’s own ad archive show that the company’s new system to ensure diverse audiences for housing and employment ads has many of the same problems as its predecessor.
Employers Used Facebook to Keep Women and Older Workers From Seeing Job Ads. The Federal Government Thinks That’s Illegal.
In a first, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that companies violated civil rights law through their use of Facebook’s targeting advertising.
New York Is Investigating Whether Facebook Lets Advertisers Discriminate
The state’s Department of Financial Services will look into allegations, first exposed by ProPublica, that advertisers can exclude users by race, gender, age and other characteristics that are protected under federal law.
HUD Sues Facebook Over Housing Discrimination and Says the Company’s Algorithms Have Made the Problem Worse
The charge comes a week after Facebook made major changes to its advertising platform, and two years after our reporting raised the issue.
Besieged Facebook Says New Ad Limits Aren’t Response to Lawsuits
The social network is removing 5,000 options that regulators say enable advertisers to discriminate.
We Have Some Follow-Ups for Facebook — And We Want Your Help
Senators held Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg to account today, grilling him while often citing our investigations. You can help keep Facebook accountable, too.
Fair Housing Groups Sue Facebook for Allowing Discrimination in Housing Ads
Borrowing from ProPublica’s playbook, advocates created fake companies and bought discriminatory ads on the social network.
I Approved This Facebook Message — But You Don’t Know That
The Federal Election Commission said in December that big political ads on the social network need disclaimers. But many candidates and groups don’t seem to be paying attention.
Outlets in Eight Countries Are Using Our Tool to Monitor Political Ads on Facebook
From Australia to Scandinavia, our Political Ad Collector is holding advertisers accountable by revealing pitches that only a targeted slice of Facebook users would otherwise see.
Congressman’s Bill Would Force Trump Administration to Fulfill Pledge to Study Racial Disparities in Auto Insurance Pricing
Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., cited our report that minority neighborhoods pay higher car insurance premiums than white areas with the same risk.
Facebook’s Experiment in Ad Transparency Is Like Playing Hide And Seek
Starting in Canada, Facebook is rolling out a global program to prevent foreign meddling in elections. Ads targeted to a narrow audience may be seen by other Facebook users — if they look hard enough.
AARP and Key Senators Urge Companies to End Age Bias in Recruiting on Facebook
A ProPublica/New York Times report last month has raised concerns about online job ads discriminating against older workers.
What Does Facebook Consider Hate Speech?
Our analysis shows that Facebook’s content reviewers often make different calls on whether to allow or delete items with similar content. See the inconsistencies.
Facebook’s Uneven Enforcement of Hate Speech Rules Allows Vile Posts to Stay Up
We asked Facebook about its handling of 49 posts that might be deemed offensive. The company acknowledged that its content reviewers had made the wrong call on 22 of them.
Dozens of Companies Are Using Facebook to Exclude Older Workers From Job Ads
Among the companies we found doing it: Amazon, Verizon, UPS and Facebook itself. “It’s blatantly unlawful,” said one employment law expert.
These Are the Job Ads You Can’t See on Facebook If You’re Older
It is against the law to discriminate against workers older than 40 in hiring and recruitment. We found dozens of companies who bought Facebook ads aimed at recruiting workers within limited age ranges.
New York City Moves to Create Accountability for Algorithms
Spurred by a ProPublica report, the New York City Council passed the country’s first bill to address algorithmic discrimination in city government.
Facebook Allowed Political Ads That Were Actually Scams and Malware
These ads raise doubts about Facebook’s ability to monitor paid political messages. In each case, the ads ran afoul of Facebook’s own guidelines to curb misleading and malicious advertising.
Facebook to Temporarily Block Advertisers From Excluding Audiences by Race
The social network’s actions come after a ProPublica investigation revealed that Facebook failed to keep its promise to reject discriminatory housing ads.
