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Wildfire9 here with BREAKING NEWS! Has Whyville gotten a new sponsor: GOOGLE?!?!
Reading the current Times (3/4/04) and going to the BBS, I noticed a little box
thing with... WHAT THE HECK? ADS! =O My once ad-free paradise is now clogged
with boxes at the end of every article! Being totally shocked, I decided to
Y-Mail my CW friend Scyllacat!
"I don't think Google is sponsoring us, exactly; rather, I think we're trying
out one of their less-intrusive advertising methods (we're trying to avoid
pop-up ads because they really bug.)
I'm still a little sketchy on the details, but we'll give them a try and see if
we like them.
Our relationship with Google links their ads with all the pages on the Times
(except for the BBSes, I hope.) ;)
And I think the ads are chosen by computer based on the topic of the article --
so articles about dogs will bring up Google ads relating to dogs."
Well, not quite! One article's link I found highly offensive and inappropriate!
The link, "Gay Love" (which I found in casc302's article Grandma: Whyville's
Warm Fuzzy Sweater) said "Find true love or make new friends! Free sign-up! Take
a virtual tour!"
HOLY COW! I was astonished! I found this link AFTER Y-Mailing ScyllaCat!
I know almost everyone agrees that this should not be connected to a WHYVILLE
article, especially one about GRANDMA!
Why is this madness taking over?!?!?!
Wildfire9
Editor's Note: Hi Wildfire9! Fortunately, we've had many positive responses from
our citizens so far about the new ads in the Times. Everyone understands that
advertising is a very important part of keeping a website running -- and we hope
these ads may go so far as to help us expand our site, and make Whyville better
for our citizens!
That said, PLEASE DO tell us anytime you spot offensive advertisements. Google
automates its system, which means there's nobody saying, "Hey, that's not right
for a kids' site!" I don't expect to see bad ads connected to Times content, but
wow, you never know what some advertisers will link their material to!
If you spot an inappropriate ad, please write down the link it goes to, the text
it shows on the Times page, and the Times article that showed the bad ad. Then
email that information to city-management@whyville.net. Please remember, we're
still working out everything -- we appreciate your patience, support and careful
eyes!!!
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