So Much for Good PR: Amazon Discontinues ‘Smile’ Charity Donation Program

E-commerce giant Amazon has reportedly shut down its “AmazonSmile” charity donation program as part of its ongoing cost-cutting measures.

CNBC reports that as part of its ongoing cost-cutting efforts, Amazon has announced plans to discontinue its charitable giving program, AmazonSmile. Customers could donate a portion of their eligible website purchases through the 2013-launched program to the charity of their choice. Since the program’s inception, Amazon has donated roughly $500 million to charitable organizations.

In a notice to customers posted on its website, Amazon explained the decision to shut down the program: “After almost a decade, the program has not grown to create the impact that we had originally hoped. With so many eligible organizations — more than 1 million globally — our ability to have an impact was often spread too thin.” The business also disclosed that less than $230 was donated on average to charities through the program.

Despite discontinuing AmazonSmile, the company declared that it would keep funding initiatives that allow it to “make meaningful change,” such as community assistance programs, affordable housing initiatives, and relief efforts for natural disasters. The program’s termination comes as Amazon CEO Andy Jassy launches a thorough investigation of the company’s costs in response to a deteriorating economic outlook and sluggish retail division growth.

Amazon had previously come under criticism for blocking certain conservative charities from the program. Dr. Susan Berry reported in 2020:

E-commerce giant Amazon has blocked Family Research Council (FRC), a Christian conservative nonprofit, from receiving charitable contributions through its AmazonSmile program. Amazon blocked the FRC based on the left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center falsely labeling it as a hate group.

According to Amazon, the company will donate 0.5 percent of all eligible purchases made through AmazonSmile towards a charity of the customer’s choice.

However, while Amazon customers may donate to organizations such as Planned Parenthood, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and some conservative-leaning groups, they may not contribute to Family Research Council or Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) when they shop at the site.

“Amazon has decided to single out a few well-known conservative organizations like FRC and ADF from receiving part of the tens of millions of dollars the program raises each year from customers,” wrote Kay C. James, president of the Heritage Foundation, in a column at the Washington Times.

Amazon has recently implemented several cost-cutting measures, including the most extensive layoffs in company history and a hiring freeze for the entire corporate workforce. The business has also put a stop to warehouse expansion and terminated a few test projects, including its telehealth service and an oddball kid-friendly video calling device.

Read more at CNBC here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan