John Oliver Torches Facebook With Fake Ad

Host goes after site as a 'fetid swamp of mistruths and outright lies'
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 24, 2018 7:43 AM CDT

John Oliver has proposed a new ad for Facebook, but don't expect Mark Zuckerberg to be adopting it. In the latest episode of his HBO show, Oliver delivered a scathing critique of the site that culminated in his assessment of Facebook as "a fetid swamp of mistruths and outright lies interspersed with the occasional reminder of a dead pet." Oliver focused most of his diatribe on the situation in Myanmar, saying Facebook has contributed to the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya Muslim population by allowing hateful propaganda to flourish unchecked, reports the AV Club.

At one point, when a teacher in Myanmar compared Facebook to a toilet, Oliver took exception. "There is a purity and integrity to toilets that Facebook seriously lacks," he said. That led to his suggested new ad, complete with a proposed tag line: "Facebook is a toilet and God willing, your country will survive it." Watch it in this video; the new ad comes around the 17-minute mark. (More John Oliver stories.)

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