States, FTC Move Against Ad Firms Over Rules That Limited Conservative Media Revenue

For years, some of the biggest names in digital advertising allegedly coordinated to restrict ad revenue to certain conservative media outlets. A federal court has now ordered them to stop.

The orders apply to Dentsu US, WPP's GroupM, and Publicis after the Federal Trade Commission and a coalition of eight state attorneys general alleged the companies aligned "brand safety" standards used to block ads from running on certain categories of content. None of the three companies admitted wrongdoing, and the settlements remain subject to final court approval.

When the biggest ad buyers in the world agree on which sites don't get ads, those sites don't get ads.

According to the filing, the coordination dates to 2018, when agencies worked through two industry groups, the AAAA's Advertiser Protection Bureau and the World Federation of Advertisers' Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), to establish a shared "Brand Safety Floor" designating categories of content as ineligible for advertising.

The scope of the early targeting was broad. Early drafts sought to block ads from content touching abortion, gun control, capital punishment, immigration, universal healthcare, and the Green New Deal. When that wasn't enough, they added "misinformation," a label the complaint alleges was applied in ways that reduced ad revenue for certain outlets, including Breitbart, Charlie Kirk, Glenn Beck, Steve Bannon, Fox News, and X.

"The complaint argues the arrangement harmed advertisers by eliminating competition over brand-safety tools and, ultimately, 'hampered debate on some of the most consequential and hotly debated subjects of public life' by demonetizing conservative outlets."

Regulators allege the participants were aware of the nature of their coordination and took steps to keep it out of public view. In October 2021, GARM's initiative lead explicitly warned executives not to discuss the coordination publicly:

"The first rule of Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: You do not talk about Fight Club."

An IPG executive responded to the full group that they “all need to huddle and work out what the advertising industry wants."

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A separate GroupM email described GARM as a place to "check[] their competitive relationships at the door . . . while they are engaged in the brand safety discussion." Regulators argue it shows participants knew they were setting aside normal market competition.

Scale is what transforms those decisions into leverage. As of 2023, the Big Six collectively accounted for roughly $81 billion of the $155 billion in total U.S. media billings, a 52% share. When they act in concert, entire categories of sites can lose access to that money in a single step.

GARM dissolved in August 2024 after the U.S. House Judiciary Committee concluded its conduct was likely illegal. The dissolution appeared short-lived: four days later, GroupM told business partners it would keep abiding by GARM's standards. Late 2024 communications showed industry members waiting to see "where the political chips fall" before deciding whether to resume.

Under the settlement, the three firms are barred from agreements restricting ad spending based on political viewpoints, journalistic standards, or DEI commitments, and cannot rely on shared exclusion lists built on those criteria. Each will be subject to an independent monitor for five years, with injunctions running ten years.

The case was brought by the FTC and attorneys general from eight states. Under court order, each firm must now make its own calls on where ads run without shared standards or coordinated restrictions.

The ruling drew immediate reaction from across the right. Will Hild, Executive Director of Consumers' Research, called it "a major blow to the coordination among woke entities to suppress the reach of political views they disagree with." Texas AG Ken Paxton was more blunt: "A coordinated group of woke, powerful individuals attempted to suppress that Constitutional right by manipulating ad agencies into sabotaging the reach, revenue, and credibility of conservative voices. This was an egregious attempt to control public opinion."

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