The big picture: Yelp’s move is the latest response by tech companies to a post-Roe world in which abortion information has become a major online battleground, with both sides of the debate exerting intense pressure. News Lead: Starting today, Yelp will add a consumer notice to both faith-based and non-denominational crisis pregnancy centers, noting that they “provide limited medical services and may not have licensed medical professionals on site. “It’s the latest in a series of moves Yelp has made since 2018, when CEO Jeremy Stoppelman asked the company to ensure that crisis pregnancy centers are differentiated from abortion clinics in the company’s listings.
Yelp has since reclassified thousands of service providers as crisis pregnancy centers.
Get up to speed: Crisis pregnancy centers do not offer abortion services, but they are marketed to people seeking abortions and then usually advise patients to go through with their pregnancy. What they say: “After learning about the misleading nature of crisis pregnancy centers in 2018, I’m grateful that Yelp is standing behind these efforts to provide consumers with access to reliable information about reproductive health services,” Noorie Malik, Vice President of Yelp user functions, Axios said in an email interview.
“It’s always felt unfair to me that there are clinics in the U.S. that provide misleading information or use deceptive tactics to turn pregnant women away from abortion care if that’s the path they choose to take,” Malik said.
Yes, but: Simply pointing out that crisis pregnancy centers provide limited medical services doesn’t address all the criticism surrounding such facilities. However, Malik said it should further help those seeking abortion services find what they are looking for.
“Not all consumers who visit a crisis pregnancy center’s business page may be looking for abortion services,” Malik said. He said Yelp would “increase efforts to better match” people specifically looking for abortion services with health providers who offer them, and make it less likely that such users would see crisis pregnancy centers in their search results.
Between the lines: Tech companies are in the middle of a renewed national information battle sparked by the Supreme Court’s elimination of the nation’s right to abortion.
The Alphabet Workers Union said last week it wants listings for crisis pregnancy centers removed from Google as misleading. Abortion rights activists have called for lists of crisis pregnancy centers to be more prominently labeled, citing the potential for misleading and misinforming abortion seekers, a demand that also has the support of some Democratic lawmakers. Those opposed to abortion are pushing to ensure that listings for crisis pregnancy centers remain prominently available online. Meanwhile, more crisis pregnancy centers are opening after the Dobbs decision.
What’s next: Big tech companies are also rethinking their policies.
