Truth be told, I wasn't crazy about the ads when I was first approached to start running them, but when I saw how much these folks were offering, I had to quickly reconsider.
Those simple text ads are placed here in the almighty name of SEO. That's it, and that's all. I'd love to not have to run them, but considering the money involved, it's hard to just say no. Seriously, I make more in 3 minutes putting up one of those ads than I would writing 10 freelance articles. They're also far more lucrative than the Google AdSense image ads, which, in case you haven't noticed, I have no content control over. Do you really think I'd be running a bunch of interractial fetish dating and Sarah Palin book ads if I had my way? Of course not. So, at least that's a bonus.
The quandary here is obvious: I'm a "positive black man"[1] with a website full of ads for services that ruin peoples lives. Or at least that's the way it appears on the surface.
I've long since come to terms with this. I think, just like any other thing, moderation is key. Irresponsible gaming is the fault of the gamer, not the casino. Am I still wading in slightly unsavory waters here? Sure, I suppose you could say that. But I wouldn't run malt liquor ads here, cause I hate malt liquor. I love Vegas. Live and let live. Let live and get money. It's a recession. Daddy needs some new New Balances. So, the ads stay, and there might even be more of em' coming.
Still, I'd be somewhat interested in knowing what ya'll think about this.
Question: What do you think about AB.com running gaming ads? Does this somewhat cheapen the website, or do you only care about the content here, not the ads?
[1] I really hate that term. Really.
