A Canadian girl, Rehtaeh Parsons, was used in two different Facebook ads for a dating website. The caption read, “Find Love in Canada!” However, behind this ad was a sad, horrific story. Rehtaeh was a 17 year-old-girl who hanged herself back in April. She was the subject of cyber bullying, after a photo of her suspected rape by four boys was shared on Facebook.
Rehtaeh’s mother, Leah, commented, “People harassed her, boys she didn’t know started texting her and Facebooking asking her to have sex with them since she had sex with her friends. It just never stopped.”
Facebook apologized for this disturbance. A Facebook statement to the Toronto Star includes this line: “We apologize for any harm this has caused.” The company, ionechat.com, was immediately and permanently banned.
Because Rehtaeh Parsons case has been news in Canada, a variety of Facebook users recognized her face. People began taking screenshots of the ads and tweeting about it. Facebook exhibited a bad image of itself. I cannot understand how these photos were not viewed more closely before it was put up.
Social media is scary at times. We must be careful about what we put out there and whatever you post will be out there forever. When I hear about Rehtaeh Parsons story, it sickens me and drives me to make a change. Earlier this year, I deleted my Facebook. I saw there were more cons than pros. Not only did I spend way too much time on it, but it has also become very political.
Why did this dating company use her picture? How could someone be so heartless? The owner of the website, Anh Dung, called the incident the “biggest mistake” he’s ever made and he felt extremely apologetic when he learned about Rehtaeh’s story. Apparently, he retrieved the photos from Google images randomly.
That is the problem with our society today. Too much is put out on social media and there is nothing but recklessness. People, especially the younger generation, want to portray themselves in a way that will have reactions, such as sexual pictures, etc. Not enough people consider the consequences. Yes, Google images are practically used by everybody in the world, but Anh Dung did not consider who this person was. Moreover, he did not receive consent that these photos were acceptable to use for his ads.
This is not the first time advertisers have used a random photo retrieved from Google images. It is not ethical to use without the consent of the person. Moreover, I believe there needs to be more research done before ads are put out to the world.
References:
Dumenco, S. (n.d.). Definitely ‘The Worst Facebook Ad Ever’ | Commentary and analysis from Simon Dumenco – Advertising Age. Advertising Agency & Marketing Industry News – Advertising Age. Retrieved October 1, 2013, from http://adage.com/article/the-media-guy/worst-facebook-ad/244220/
Wong, J. (n.d.). Website administrator apologizes to Rehtaeh Parsons’ family for dating ad | Globalnews.ca. Global News | Latest & Current News – Weather, Sports & Health News. Retrieved October 1, 2013, from http://globalnews.ca/news/846894/rehtaeh-parsons-family-disgusted-by-dating-ads-featuring-daughters-picture/
Loyola Digital Advertising [로욜라 디지털 광고] 
It’s scary to think that just by having any picture on Facebook, you are giving consent for that picture to be used whether the advertiser asks you to use it or not. It doesn’t really come down to consent, but it is more about doing your research and having a personal set of digital ethics to abide by.
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This is a perfect example of how being too lazy and not doing your research can cause huge problems. The owner of the company just doing a google search to find pictures? sketchy ethically and legally to start, but with a problem like this surfacing, I doubt he’ll be doing much more of that. It’s also interesting to note how much this affected Facebook negatively when there’s not much they could have done to change this. Their ads just take pictures companies upload and want to use, in reality most of the blame belongs to ionechat.com, but Facebook also will took a large media hit.
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I also find it interesting that Facebook was considered responsible for the use of her image. Personally, I do not think that Facebook should have to take accountability for the company’s advertisements. It’s the company’s responsibility to practice ethically, and it reflects badly on them for not their research, not Facebook.
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I personally do not blame Facebook for the use of this picture, but I do blame them for not screening who advertises there. I have seen so many ridiculous advertisements on Facebook who knows what’s behind them! I have gotten to the point I don’t take any of them seriously, they are basically spam.
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