Anti fake news activists persuade cancer charity to remove advert on The Canary

Macmillan Cancer Support has removed an advert placed on The Canary following complaints from Rachel Riley and anti-fake news activists.

The cancer charity removed an appeal for donations placed under an article on the news website.

The article, which was headlined “While all eyes were on Chequers, a TIG MP travelled 3,000 miles to smear Jeremy Corbyn”, rebuked former Labour MP Joan Ryan for speaking out against antisemitism in the party at the AIPAC conference.

In a tweet, Macmillan Cancer Support wrote: “We hear your concerns about where our ads appear, and will remove this placement whilst we review the platforms used for our online ads.”

A tweet sent on Monday from an account called Dave Gordstein appealed to the cancer charity to remove the advert due to concerns about the website.

The appeal was shared the next day by Riley and a group of activists called Stop Funding Fake News, which targets websites accused of publishing fake news by calling on brands to boycott them.

To stop an advert from appearing on a website, advertisers need only add the web address of the website to a dedicated page in their AdWords account.

Stop Funding Fake News, which launched last month, has convinced Ted Baker, WWF and Moonpig to pull ads.

Riley encouraged her followers to support Stop Funding Fake News, adding: “A small way we can all make a difference against hate, and stop people profiting from dividing us.”

The Canary has been approached for comment.