# Thoughts on Microtargeting **Microtargeting in advertising is a method that uses large amounts of data on users of a platform to target certain target audiences with great specificity.** It has become very controversial after the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal of 2018. For social media effects on society see [[How Social Media Impacted Modern Society]]. ## Makes Advertising More Accessible to Small Businesses In his essay *In Defense of Targeting*, Jeff Jarvis defended the practice by arguing that **it's beneficial for small businesses, as it gives them the opportunity to effectively advertise at all. This is based on the cost of regular mass media advertising, which is significantly higher as advertisers need to ineffectively blanket the large swaths of the audience.** > With targeting, a small business, a new candidate, a nascent movement can efficiently and inexpensively reach people who would be interested in their messages so they may transact or assemble and act. **Targeted advertising delivers greater relevance at lower cost and democratizes advertising for those who could not previously afford it, whether that is to sell homemade jam or organize a march for equality.** [^1] [^1]: [In Defense of Targeting](https://buzzmachine.com/2020/01/10/in-defense-of-targeting/) ## Microtargeting Is Just a Tool Jarvis goes on to argue that the stigma microtargeting has received after the Trump campaign is misplaced: he simply did a better job at using the tools at his disposal. The same line of reasoning can be applied to the second amendment though, so I'm not sure how effective this argument can be (guns don't kill people, people kill people).