What is GARM? 'Collusive' ad group allegedly targeting conservatives faces grilling from top House committee

A controversial advertising alliance has drawn the attention of one of the most powerful House committees in Congress as critics allege it has fostered corporate collusion in order to silence certain political messages. 

The Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) describes itself as a "cross-industry initiative" started as part of the World Federation of Advertisers that, according to a spokesperson, "was established in 2019 to help the advertising industry address the challenge of illegal or harmful content on digital media platforms and its monetization via advertising."

"It was set up in the wake of the Christchurch Mosque shootings in which the killer livestreamed the attacks on Facebook," the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "This followed a slew of high-profile cases where brands’ advertisements appeared next to illegal or harmful content, such as child pornography and content promoting terrorism. This included the 2017 London Times exposé entitled ‘Big brands fund terror through online adverts.’"

The group claims to be "apolitical" and "voluntary" and says that it benefits its members by providing use of "resources and information about best practices to learn where their advertising investments go, and to avoid placement next to illegal or harmful content that could damage their brands’ reputation."

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"GARM offers voluntary frameworks to help brands choose the content they want their ads to appear next to," GARM’s website says. 

However, GARM's critics have a different view of the organization and suggest that it has colluded with dozens of major U.S. corporations to push boycotts and suppress speech in a manner that targets conservatives.

In discussing his views on freedom of speech, GARM’s leader and co-founder, Rob Rakowitz, has expressed frustration with an "extreme global interpretation of the US Constitution" and complained about using "‘principles for governance’ and applying them as literal law from 230 years ago (made by white men exclusively)." With this worldview, GARM pushed what it called "uncommon collaboration" to "rise above individual commercial interest."

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The House Judiciary Committee released an extensive report outlining how it believes "large corporations, advertising agencies, and industry associations participated in boycotts and other coordinated action to demonetize platforms, podcasts, news outlets, and other content deemed disfavored by GARM and its members."

GARM is alleged to have worked with large companies to implement advertising crackdowns on Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, Spotify, political candidates and news outlets, including Fox News, The Daily Wire and Breitbart News.

"The Committee’s oversight has shown that GARM has deviated far from its original intent, and has collectively used its immense market power to demonetize voices and viewpoints the group disagrees with — even intervening in situations that do not have a so-called ‘brand safety’ concern," Committee Chairman Jim Jordan wrote in a letter to over 40 companies last week. 

"Through its oversight, the Committee has learned that collusive activity is occurring within the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), of which your company is a member. In particular, the Committee has uncovered evidence of coordinated action by GARM and its member companies, including boycotts of disfavored social media platforms, podcasts, and news outlets."

"The Committee on the Judiciary is conducting oversight into the adequacy and enforcement of U.S. antitrust laws," the letter said.

Along with Adidas, the letter was sent to a variety of other companies, including American Express, Bayer, BP, Carhartt, Chanel, CVS and General Motors, asking them to preserve documents related to their involvement with GARM.

Musk has also publicly criticized GARM and suggested taking legal action against the group while referring to it as an "advertising boycott racket."

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The WFA spokesperson, Will Gilroy, told Fox News Digital this week that the "recent allegations by the US House Judiciary Committee against GARM for anti-competitive behavior are unfounded."

 "Membership of GARM is entirely voluntary. Its frameworks and tools are intentionally broad, and individual companies are free to review, adopt, modify, or reject them, as they see fit," Gilroy said. "The decision where and when to advertise is always down to the individual advertiser, in collaboration with their agency partners where relevant."

"Recent engagement with industry leaders suggests that GARM’s work remains valuable and increasingly relevant as digital media continues to develop," he continued. "As such, GARM will continue to live up to its commitment to help allow its members to drive more responsible marketing practices."