Why all the repuke ads on DU?

[HelenWheels]

I don't get it. Who is responsible for these ads?

[pinto]

1. They're randomly generated. Our Administrators don't have prior approval,

but can block ads once they show up in the "cycle". Drop a note to them if you see an inappropriate / offensive ad -

[e-mail]

Thanks. ~ pinto

[HelenWheels]

4. Don't understand

randomly generated. Who's paying for them?

[johnaries]

12. Who's paying for them? thanks to Citizen's United nobody knows. nt

[leftstreet]

2. We generate the ads with our keywords * * PENIS PENIS PENIS **

Let me know what happens

[NYC Liberal]

3. We really need a sticky for this question, it gets asked so much.

Nothing against the OP at all, I just think it would be helpful to have something pinned to the top explaining how the ads here work and how to report them.

[Uncle Joe]

16. I believe that's because most people here don't see the ads, our little gold star protects us.

I don't know all the intricate workings of DU but there must be better system of selling ads.

The practice of running Republicans Ads on a Democratic Website seems to fly in the face of said web site's mission, particularly during election time.

[Greyhound]

5. Because the Republiks are spending lots of (our) money buying ads.

The Democrats, not so much.

[movonne]

6. Because they have all the money...and for du to get some of that

money they run adds...

[Subdivisions]

7. It's called 'contextual advertising'. The ads can detect the content of a website.

Since DU is rife with wannabe right-wingers, you'll see right-wing ads.

Simple.

[drm604]

9. It isn't so much the presence of right-wingers as it is simply the presence of political discussion.

The contextual software isn't smart enough to know if posters or left-wing or right-wing. It keys off of words on the page. So if someone is complaining about Christine O'Donnell, it sees that name and shows an ad related to that name. It may be an anti-O'Donnell ad, or it may be a pro-O'Donnell ad.

[Journeyman]

8. Donate and they'll mostly go away - Poof! (just as if Christine O'Donnell cast a spell on 'em). . .

[AlabamaLibrul]

10. The prior responses are correct, and I would add that the ads are pay-per-click... n/t

[PSPS]

11. Firefox + the free "Ad Block" add-on = no ads at all!

[blogslut]

13. Here

This page explains how it works:

http://adwords.google.com

[demosincebirth]

14. $$$$$$

[Vickers]

15. What ads?

:shrug:

[Uncle Joe]

17. If you want to see the ads, just log off DU and lurk for a while without logging in. n/t