Thread · 9 tweets · 5 May 2022

It's important to read Aram's thread about the very real threat that adtech poses to uterus-havers post-Roe, and consider it in the context of the narrative that the adtech industry (at least those who still refuse privacy) has been pushing around this tech.

One key tenet is that "people want relevant advertising" and that is somewhat true (within limits). But no want is absolute, everything has a cost. Do people want relevant advertising that puts women on death row?

Another common point is "but there are plenty of *good* people in adtech, I sleep well at night, we don't do those things." And often it's true. But unless the only market in which you operate is Care Bear Land, we still protections against the many bad actors.

That's particularly relevant as the DAA launches yet another pretend self-regulation framework. These are the people who brought you the twenty-year train wreck that is AdChoices, with an enforcement arsenal involving pinky promises and tut-tutting. digitaladvertisingalliance.org/press-release/…

(Industry experts will note the mention of the "Prebid Addressability Framework" — that looks like little more than a jargonwashing of SWAN — in that announcement. It's sad to see a pragmatic and effective technical project like @prebidjs heading backwards that way.)

Then come the "tech should treat the law as a floor and a ceiling" people. The idea that you can't build things better than a legal minimum is nonsense, but worse: that position means being ethically comfortable with adtech-powered abortion bounty hunters. nytimes.com/2021/09/10/us/…

Nobody who's adtech-adjacent (as I am) is perfect, data leaks everywhere, and I'm not seeking to point fingers here. But we have to cut the bullshit. None of the above narratives holds water, and we shouldn't let those who push them influence an industry.

If you don't understand the very real threat that today's data-happy adtech (and product) creates for many people (pregnant, but many others too), you're not qualified to work with data.

If you do understand the threat but don't care, I think we're justified in ignoring your opinion.