GARM Adjacency Standards Framework

he Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) is an industry-first effort that unites marketers, media agencies, media platforms and industry associations to safeguard the potential of digital media by reducing the availability and monetization of harmful content online. These steps are essential to create a safer digital media environment that enriches society through content, communications and commerce.

In September 2020 we took our first significant step and created a solution in a common framework of shared definitions, known as the GARM Brand Safety Floor + Suitability Framework. That foundational framework set out an agreed set of sensitive content categories with different risk levels, each with monetization guidelines that range from content that is not suitable for advertising (The Brand Safety Floor) to content that is suitable to be eligible for monetization but may present varying degrees of sensitivity to the advertiser (The Suitability Framework).

The Adjacency Standards Framework is designed to serve as a companion to the GARM Suitability Framework, providing advertising industry participants with a common structure for evaluating the brand safety and suitability of an ad placement relative to an ad’s position to nearby content (i.e. "adjacency”) within specific media formats. The Adjacency Standards Framework works within the confines of the GARM Suitability Framework – where sensitive content may be supported by advertising.