Ann Coulter’s anti-gay slur directed at Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards illustrates why advertisers and their agencies tend to remain skittish when it comes to advertising on political pundits’ websites. As CNN reported, Verizon, Sallie Mae and NetBank have said that they pulled their ads following complaints initiated by readers of the liberal blog DailyKos, which posted contact information for advertisers on Ann Coulter’s site. (We’re not talking big numbers. For example, Verizon spends $20 million of its $1.4 billion total ad budget on online advertising, according to TNS Media Intelligence.)
All three companies say it is not their policy to advertise on political websites of any kind. Rather, they have blamed it on the agencies hired to make the ad buys. While most media buys are discussed with clients, sometimes, especially when it comes to the kinds of smaller purchases on websites like Coulter’s, the buys can come in under the radar — only to be picked up when controversy arises.
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