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Past Issues
Feb 26, 2024

Google lets brands audit some GSP ads after Check My Ads pressure campaign

Update: After publication, a Google spokesperson clarified that the transparency is only for Pmax placement reports and not for search campaign reports. We regret the error (of assuming Google did the right thing and was going to be fully transparent with search ad placement). This story has been updated. Big

Feb 23, 2024

CONFIRMED: Google is cracking down on scammy advertisers after our Shark Tank report

Last month we reported that Google was helping scammers swindle people with fake Shark Tank diet pills — and making money while doing it. That’s no longer the case. We’re thrilled to see that Google has taken action against scammers and updated its ad policies.

Feb 16, 2024

Jezebel’s new owner has a request for advertisers: Please stop hurting journalism

Josh Jackson was shocked when he found out what term, if used in the music publication he co-founded, could automatically strip an article of ad revenue. It was the word “song.” That was just one of more than 4,000 “negative keywords” a major advertiser looking to run ads on

Feb 9, 2024

WATCH: Hate is a business, and here's how you unplug it

Check My Ads' Claire Atkin appeared on MSNBC's 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle and broke down how disinformation sites use adtech to threaten democracy and make a buck. 0:00 /6:56 1× Transcript: Stephanie Ruhle: Misinformation is a big, big business and like a lot of digital companies it

Feb 6, 2024

Did Rumble just offer Jordan Peterson front-page real estate?

Video streaming site Rumble, which platforms QAnon conspiracy theorists, men facing sexual misconduct allegations, and a white nationalist influencer, has a new opportunity in its sights: Jordan Peterson. In a tweet on Monday, Peterson complained he was facing censorship on YouTube, where he claimed “pathological shadow-figures” were hiding his name

Feb 2, 2024

Disinformation is one of the world’s biggest risks ahead of elections, reports say. But it doesn't have to be.

As we hurtle toward one of the most consequential election years of our lifetimes, major groups are warning of a huge risk on the horizon: mis- and disinformation. That’s according to both the World Economic Forum and the Eurasia Group, which published separate but eerily similar reports on the

Jan 24, 2024

X pushed MrBeast’s video into users’ timelines, but hid that advertisers paid to put it there

If you’ve been scrolling X in the past week, you’ve probably seen YouTuber MrBeast in a video looking back at you. And unless you’re an avid fan of his, you likely don’t know why. The answer is: Advertisers are pushing it into your timeline, but X

Jan 23, 2024

Google is getting fat off fake Shark Tank weight loss gummies

Mark Cuban and Shark Tank don’t appreciate Google letting scammers use their brand to hurt people. Google is spoon-feeding fake “Shark Tank approved” weight loss gummy candies to innocent people — and making money doing it. The search giant’s monopoly power in the ad industry apparently lets them profit

Sep 26, 2023

How to block Rumble from your ad campaigns

A helpful guide to blocking your ads from the internet’s most toxic platform. Major advertisers have started axing Rumble from their media buys — and for good reason. Rumble, known as “the free speech alternative” to YouTube, is the exclusive home of Russell Brand’s daily live show. Last week,

Sep 18, 2023

Townhall Media has turned climate lies into a booming business

So why are ad exchanges still running your ads on them?

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