Facebook Inc. is taking more steps to make its social network a cleaner, more well-lighted site for advertisers, this time not by removing certain content, but by not allowing content it deems inappropriate to make money from ads.

In a blog post today discussing the new monetization guidelines, Facebook said the latest move was to ensure the safety of the public. The company said that content will first be flagged using one of its algorithms and the final adjudicator will be human. On top of that, Facebook reminded people that certain advertisers might avoid sensitive topics, and if publishers continue to publish them, they may lose their right to monetization.

The guidelines are very thorough, to say the least. Content that can’t be monetized will include anything containing offensive language, something Facebook didn’t expand on, but did say this could mean anything insulting or derogatory. It also includes not just sexual content, but anything that could be “sexually provocative.” Neither will nudity be allowed.

This is particularly confounding as anyone who has studied advertising 101 knows that sexually provocative material makes up the bulk of the advertising business. Meanwhile, Facebook said the move was mainly to make advertisers feel more comfortable about where their ads appeared. It might also result in sexually provocative ads ending up on posts that get banned for being sexually provocative.

Facebook further explained that publishers should stay away from showing booze and drugs, or anything criminal for that matter. It will also mean no explicit material including gore, graphic images, medical procedures – even for educational purposes. That is also the case with natural disasters, debated social issues, injuries, casualties, illness, even if for the purpose of news.

Not surprisingly, content also cannot be monetized if it contains any kind of violence, beatings, violence against animals and any extreme violence in video game play. Children should not be sexualized or seen doing adult things, even for the purposes of comedy.

Finally, Facebook addressed “debated social issues,” barring “content that is incendiary, inflammatory, demeaning or disparages people, groups, or causes…. Content that features or promotes attacks on people or groups is generally not eligible for ads, even if in the context of news or awareness purposes.”

All this follows the announcement last month of Facebook Watch, a platform for original video content in which publishers can earn up to 55 percent of the ad revenue.

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