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Being Evil

Google is anti-gun. Received a message from Google Adsense:

While reviewing your account, we noticed that you are currently displaying Google ads in a manner that is not compliant with our policies. For instance, we found violations of AdSense policies on pages such as thegunblogs.com.

As stated in our program policies, AdSense publishers are not permitted to place Google ads on sites with content related to certain weapons and weapon accessories, such as firearms, balisongs, butterfly knives, and brass knuckles.

As a result, we have disabled ad serving to the site.

Your AdSense account remains active. However, we strongly suggest that you take the time to review our program policies to ensure that all of your remaining pages are in compliance.

Please note that we may disable your account if further violations are found in the future.

Sincerely,

The Google AdSense Team

I reply with:

To my knowledge, my site is in compliance as your policy states:

“Sales or promotion of weapons or ammunition (e.g., firearms, fighting knives, stun guns)”

There are no sales occuring at thegunblogs that I am aware of.

They reply (after a week):

Hello,

Thanks for your email. We feel that, because the content of your site is largely focused on firearms, the site is not a good fit for the AdSense program. We appreciate your understanding.

Sincerely,

Scott
The Google AdSense Team

I reply:

You should specify that in your policy then. I and other reasonable people are unable to determine how you ‘feel.’

I note, however, you’ve had no issue selling gun related items on my site via your ads*.

Don’t be evil.

* Note: for evidence, look to your left.

38 Responses to “Being Evil”

  1. #9 Says:

    Fork Google. There, I said it.

  2. gattsuru Says:

    Don’t worry, they’ll remove that advertisement soon enough.

    I don’t understand the mentality, here. Are advertisers so worried that they’ll be linked with lawful gun use (if they advertise something similar to guns, and if their viewer reads about gun use that often) that it’s worth losing advertising space?

  3. Lyle Says:

    More “Reasoned Discourse” in action.

  4. Blounttruth Says:

    Hmmmm, that would really hurt stocks if there was a pro-firearm boycott of AdSense, and perhaps Google search and GMAIL all together…. Not a very intellegent move on their part, or for their share holders.

  5. Boondoggie Says:

    Don’t boycott Google, click every ad on a pro-gun site you can find!

    Let’s see how their politics stacks up against revenue.

  6. Snowflakes in Hell » Blog Archive » Breaking News: oIoo From Google Says:

    […] you get my little ASCII illustration there.  SayUncle gets removed from the AdSense program because of firearms content.  I don’t keep ads on Snowflakes in Hell, and have no intention […]

  7. Sebastian Says:

    I have to tell you, I can’t really boycott google and still function. But AdSense benefits google. It’s really their loss if they want to be shit heads about this.

  8. Breda Says:

    Not much of a surprise, considering this

  9. JR Says:

    Front Sight purchases a ton of ad space via AdSense, as do quite a few other businesses.

    Let the businesses that advertise on AdSense know Google’s policy and how they enforce it. The folks paying the bucks have the ability to get this policy changed.

  10. DirtCrashr Says:

    Google is a cult. They’re like a commune. They took-over the old Silicon Graphics HQ where Algore gave one of his early “My Internet” speeches when the ‘Net was really taking off – running on the SGI servers before they built all the server-farms out on 237 by Alviso… Anyhow I see Googleoids all the time, wandering oblivious out into the street in front of cars, geeking around on fat tired beach-bikes. These are the permanently arrested-adolescents – stuck in College Dormlife forever.

  11. Jim W Says:

    I already block google ads anyway.

  12. BadIdeaGuy Says:

    Wow, business is that good for google that they can give up some?

  13. Chris Byrne Says:

    THey did the exact same thing to me over a year ago.

    http://anarchangel.blogspot.com/2006/02/dont-be-evil-ok-how-about-politicially.html

  14. chris Says:

    What is it with these stupid dotcoms and tech companies?

    They seem to think that everyone of the earth’s problems can be solved with a mouse, a monitor and a Paypal account.

    Usefull idiots.

  15. Mike M. Says:

    Time for the NRA to put an anti-discrimination act on the “to get passed by Congress” list.

  16. Linoge Says:

    AdSense publishers are not permitted to place Google ads on sites with content related to certain weapons and weapon accessories, such as firearms, balisongs, butterfly knives, and brass knuckles.

    So those of us who are interested in our Second Amendment rights are not permitted to show AdSense advertisements, but companies that sell weapons, weapon-related items, and weapons training are allowed to buy AdSense advertisements?

    So Google is willing to take our money, but not let us make money off them? Yeah, that seems… right.

  17. Steve Says:

    Its nice to know we are banned along with illegal drugs, illegal activities, copyright infringement etc etc.

    You probably would not get a high click through rate anyway. The ads could not display anything firearms related.

    Does the yahoo ad program have the same restrictions?

  18. Puck Says:

    I just wrote this up in my blog and added 3 very interesting screen captures…

    http://whatfools.blogspot.com/2007/09/google-discriminates.html

  19. Zendo Deb Says:

    Adblock Plus puts a bit of a crimp in the business plan of Google Ads.

    Most ads are garbage. So I choose not to see them. Lot less static in the world since I installed it.

  20. Jim W Says:

    Using the internet without adblock these days is almost inconceivable. I nearly have an epileptic fit when I use other people’s computers and see flashing ads everywhere.

    I find it amusing that Google will let prostitutes (oh sorry escorts) and weapon sellers advertise but won’t let the ads be displayed on sites that sell weapons. That is the kind of policy a government regulator might think up.

  21. jimmyb Says:

    If you can’t live without google, try this:

    Scroogle Scraper

    They hate google much, and the engine does find things well.

  22. Music City Bloggers » Blog Archive » Google Vs. Guns Says:

    […] SaysUncle has been having a bit of a problem with Google. Google is anti-gun. […]

  23. Kevin Says:

    Pistol Ringtones? Makes your phone sound like a gun being fired?

  24. SayUncle » More on Google Ads Says:

    […] December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 « « Being Evil | Home […]

  25. anonymous Says:

    Microsoft could do us all a big favor. Start shipping IE with an ad blocker. That would put Google out of business right quick. MSN doesn’t make diddly squat ad wise so it wouldn’t hurt Microsoft. So there you go Microsoft get to it!

  26. Linoge Says:

    Bah. I keep trying to trackback ping, and it keeps failing. Oh well. Suffice to say that my AdSense account has been cancelled, at least whenever they bother getting around to my email.

  27. SayUncle Says:

    Not sure about your ping. Not showing up in my filters.

  28. Linoge Says:

    Probably my fault – I use a local program to post things to my weblog, and it occasionally times out. The address I should be pinging is the post’s, right? no “/trackback/” stuff?

  29. LibertyNews.org - Liberty and Freedom for All » Google & Guns Says:

    […] Uncle is reporting that he received a note from Google AdWords that they wouldn’t run ads on his site because it […]

  30. SayUncle » More Google and Guns Says:

    […] I’m not the only one. Joe Huffman notes similar dealings with Google and their unclear policies. And Chris had the same problem as me last year. It’s like they don’t support free speech and civil rights, or something. […]

  31. _Jon Says:

    I have commented in the past their politics and behaviors do not appear to align with yours.

    I agree with the above comment that moving away from gmail is a step you can take.

  32. The Countertop Chronicles » Don’t Be Evil Says:

    […] Unless your Google. […]

  33. Zendo Deb Says:

    googlonymous is another choice to stick it to google (which still has every search term ever – though they are “planning” to respect your privacy in the future.

  34. Joe Huffman Says:

    Microsoft has a search engine alternative to Google that was just updated to have results “on par” with Google. A few more details are in my blog posting.

  35. SayUncle » Google and Guns Updated Says:

    […] an update to Google being anti-gun (but apparently pro-hooker), here’s the latest correspondence: Thanks for your thoughts on […]

  36. Google advertises on their own Gun site but not on Gun blogs! | The Firearm Blog Says:

    […] recently wrote here and here about how Google refuses to allow Google ads on gun blogs because…. the content of […]

  37. SayUncle » More on Google ads and guns Says:

    […] may know that I’m in a bit of a back and forth with them. See here, here, here, and here. Well, Steve notes that google advertises at their own gun site, a google […]

  38. SayUncle » More Being Evil Says:

    […] my fight with Google Ad Sense (note: even though I pointed them to my other sites, they haven’t pulled the ads yet, which I […]

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