online advertising

A British advertising watchdog group ruled on Wednesday that the Spotify horror ad is "likely to cause undue distress to children."

Music & Culture

Watchdog Group Finds Spooky Spotify Ad Is Too Scary For Kids, Causes 'Distress'

4:57pm October 17, 2018

by Vanessa Romo

In 60 seconds, the commercial showcases a medley of horror film tropes, including a maniacal doll that presumably kills a group of young people whenever they play a catchy pop song.

A new lawsuit alleges Facebook is misleading advertisers, but the company says it can't guarantee that all ads will reach their intended targets.

Advertising On Facebook: Is It Worth It?

10:15pm September 12, 2018

by Jasmine Garsd

A lawsuit says Facebook is misleading advertisers about just how effective it is. Facebook, which makes billions from ads, says it can't guarantee that all of them will reach their intended targets.

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With examples of Russian-created Facebook pages behind him, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., questions witnesses during a 2017 Senate hearing on Russian-backed ads on social media in the 2016 election. Now, the Federal Election Commission is looking into increa

Politics & Government

Long-Divided Federal Election Commission Unites On Digital Ad Transparency

12:06pm March 15, 2018

by Peter Overby

The FEC is under pressure after Russian trolls used social media to meddle in the presidential election.

Google To Block 'Annoying' Online Ads That Fail To Make The Grade

7:58am February 15, 2018

by Scott Neuman

Starting today, Google will award ads a "passing," "warning" and "failing" designation and block some of the most annoying, including pop-ups and auto-playing videos.

Google says it will improve its internal systems and give advertisers more control of where their spots appear, responding to complaints about the pairing of paid ads with offensive content.

Google Promises To Keep Ads Off 'Hateful, Offensive' YouTube Content

2:52pm March 21, 2017

by Bill Chappell

On Friday, a division of a global marketing group with a digital budget of more than $200 million put its dealings with Google on "pause," citing recent controversies.

Author Tim Wu says that much of the content on the Internet is created by businesses that are on a "quest for clicks."

Books
Arts

How Free Web Content Traps People In An Abyss Of Ads And Clickbait

4:02pm October 17, 2016

Author and law professor Tim Wu says much of the "free" content on the Web comes at a price to users, who are subjected to ads that are targeted specifically at them and increasingly hard to ignore.

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The rise of ad blockers threatens the business model that drives much of the Internet economy.

National

With Ad Blocking Use On The Rise, What Happens To Online Publishers?

1:56pm July 21, 2015

by NPR Staff

A new Apple update could challenge the current online business model. Some say less ad revenue means more sites will charge for access to content. There's also a move to block the ad blockers.

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