Texas’s new abortion law, which bans most abortions after six weeks, has now gone into effect after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene. As a result, Texas has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world.
The court’s ruling on September 1st has caused uproar across the country, with media coverage flooding the internet and public interest in the subject high. Beyond the usual battle of public opinion at the legislative and media level, many brands have also taken matters into their own hands in speaking out and acting against the law.
We did a deep dive into the online reactions that received the most attention since the Supreme Court’s decision not to act, and highlighted some of the companies that have made headlines through their stances.
Public and media interest in corporate responses to the Texas abortion law since September 2nd
Since the law came into force there have been 3.4k articles written about responses to it with more than a million engagements. Media interest peaked on September 3rd, with 1.1k articles published. The majority of them were about how brands were responding to the new law. The Verge’s article about GoDaddy cutting off Texas Right to Life’s abortion ‘whistleblowing’ website saw the highest level of engagement.
The largest peak in public interest was the following day, as more brands — including the likes of Lyft, Uber, and Bumble — began to push back against the law.
The top articles about the Texas abortion law focus on brands
Brands are often accused of being all talk when it comes to taking a stand, but many of the companies involved here are actively putting their money where their mouth is.
The top article by The Verge, which we noted above, received over 80k engagements to its article about GoDaddy, but NPR’s article about Lyft and Uber was a close second, generating 78k engagements. Lyft confirmed it will donate $1 million to Planned Parenthood, stating it will “ensure that transportation is never a barrier to healthcare access.”
However, perhaps the most consequential action by both of these companies is their pledge to completely cover any legal fees incurred by drivers who could be sued for transporting passengers to an abortion.
Additionally, dating app companies Bumble and Match announced that they will be creating funds that help women battle the state’s law. Austin-based Bumble, which notes it is woman-founded and women-led in its announcement, called it a “relief fund” that will be distributed to organizations that support reproductive rights.
The company was not shy about expressing its opinion on the law, and used Instagram and Twitter to make sure the announcement was heard. HuffPost’s article about Bumble and Match received over 37k engagements and was fourth on the list of top articles.
One brand that was mentioned completely in isolation from other efforts was Salesforce, which was written about in an article on CNBC. Salesforce announced it will offer to help employees relocate from Texas if they are concerned about access to reproductive care. The article received 30k engagements and was retweeted by Salesforce CEO, Marc Benioff.
Top web publishers on responses to the Texas abortion law
Many of the top publishers wrote similar numbers of articles, but the six articles from NPR were the most influential, with more than 138k engagements. NPR was responsible for three out of the top ten articles overall, and focused mostly on how brands were responding to the law. The Verge and HuffPost round out the top three publishers and together generated over 133k engagements.
The Atlantic was the only publisher to write just one article, but was still highly engaged. Their article discussed how Texas Republicans might regret the abortion ban and received 39k engagements.
Although it may not be shocking that the Texas abortion law caused a stir among the media and public, it is now extremely clear that brands possess the power to influence public discourse and legislative conversations. With companies like Lyft and Uber leading the way, brands may continue to follow suit in order to protect the rights of their employees and customers.
