The Los Angeles Police Department has opened an inquiry after a recruitment ad went up on the right-wing website Breitbart, saying such a job listing would conflict with the department’s “core values.”
After being peppered with questions on social media, Police Chief Michel Moore said Saturday on Twitter that the LAPD did not purchase ad space from the site and is trying to determine whether the posting was meant to “discredit” the department. The LAPD’s official Twitter account said in a separate set of messages that the department is looking for ways to ensure that the situation doesn’t happen again.
“We are aware that a recruitment advertisement has been circulated on a website that creates a negative juxtaposition to our core values,” department officials said in a separate Twitter message.
Critics have repeatedly accused Breitbart of running racist and sexist content over the past decade, pointing to articles with such headlines as “The Smartest People in the World Are All Men,” “Birth Control Makes Women Unattractive and Crazy,” and “Data: Young Muslims Are a Ticking Time Bomb in the West.”
Read the full story on LATimes.com.
We have stopped these Google Ads altogether while we reexamine our ad filters and take all necessary steps to ensure tighter control of ad settings. @LAPDHQ
— Join LAPD (@joinlapd) September 28, 2019
No. LAPD did NOT purchase or otherwise acquire ad space on that website.
Senior leadership at LA City Personnel Department also relayed they did not authorize or pay for this ad either.
Both Depts s investigating whether spoof/other effort to discredit LAPD https://t.co/FJfMyx19DT
— Chief Michel Moore (@LAPDChiefMoore) September 28, 2019