ICE Recruitment ads Spark Boycotts

You are sitting in traffic, listening to Taylor Swift on Spotify becuase it’s easier than discovering new music. An ad interrupts your stream. The serious tone of the narrator signals its importance: “Join the mission to protect America,” the voice commands, “with bonuses up to $50,000 and generous benefits. Apply now … and fulfill your mission.”

This is an Immigration and Customs Enforcement recruitment ad,part of the Trump management’s investment of $30 billion to add over 10,000 deportation officers by year’s end. You might have avoided this ad by subscribing to Spotify’s ad-free tier, but now you’re considering switching to Apple Music or Tidal.

Being subjected to recruitment ads for a domestic force assembled under a controversial administration has generated intense backlash, culminating in calls for boycotts of streaming services and platforms featuring ICE spots. These include Pandora, ESPN, YouTube, Hulu, and Fubo TV. HBO Max subscribers have expressed frustration on X about being shown ICE recruitment videos during all elite Wrestling: “time to be force-fed ICE commercials against my will for two hours again #WWENXT,” @YKWrestling wrote.

Recruitment ads-like the classic “I Want You” poster-are an American tradition, particularly during wartime. However, this current effort aims to deploy forces within American cities, based on claims that U.S. metro areas are under siege from dangerous undocumented immigrants, leftist protesters, and other perceived threats.