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After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

blog.ericgoldman.org

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Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#11

Post by kevin_thibedeau »

BLKNSLVR wrote: post #5

I do find it interesting that the author specifies they use an ad blocker whilst also wanting to view the industry 'from the inside'. I'm not sure there isn't a level of hypocrisy there, albeit understandable. As staunchly anti-advertising, I wouldn't include advertising on anything I publish personally, but then I also don't publish anything, so I have no pressure to change my stance. I think I've convinced myself t…

It's an act of self-protection. I'm not anti-advertising. I'm anti-running-untrusted-software on my property. If they had stuck to adwords and static images with no invasive tracking I'd let their ads run. But the surveillance capitalists can't help themselves and want to run their 50MB spyware payload on my computer. I say no to that garbage.

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#13

Post by breput »

Several years ago, I ran a niche hobbyist website and incorporated Adsense (because why not?!?). The site featured a fuzzy search function since it referenced tens of thousands of named parts. The search result page would echo the (sanitized) search term followed by the matching results - along with recent search terms in the right sidebar.

One day, some spambot hit the site and started searching for terms like "mesothelioma". Adsense would see that page with "mesothelioma" in the sidebar, query for it, and served up the ambulance chaser's paid ads, even though there obviously were no matching results.

I didn't realize this was happening for several weeks since this low volume site was earning very little and I never even hit the minimum withdrawal limit. Suddenly I was earning $50 - $100 - per day. This lasted for a few weeks but before I could transfer the earnings, Google locked the AdSense account due to abuse. It might surprise you, but Google support was not helpful and after a series of reviews, they permanently shut down Adsense for this site.

Therefore, I also turned off Google Adsense for my websites.

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#14

Post by BLKNSLVR »

beej71 wrote: post #7

I had some sites that used it years ago ca. 2006. $500/mo at peak. Then one month it suddenly halved for no apparent reason. And it kept dropping. After a while or just wasn't with the ugliness. And I learned to never count on Google. Since then I've become anti-ad and haven't had any for years. I am sorry for my embarrassing lapse in judgment. :)

This is pointing out something that seems to be deeply human, it's not intended as a personal dig, because I think I'd be in the same boat:

It's interesting, not unexpected and not un-understandable, that your opinion started changing as the dollar value decreased. I greatly dislike what this says about the effect of money on the human psyche. It's as old as time, but this hack hasn't been patched and I don't think it can be: Humans will sell their souls for a price.

I forgive you for your lapse in judgement. You are human after all - not intended as an insult ;)

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#15

Post by vetrom »

drnick1 wrote: post #8

Aren't most people using ad blockers these days, making the revenue that one can generate with ads trivial unless traffic is enormous?

It seems to me at its root, that it's a question of available ad attention, and the value thereof.

The classic value prop for ads has been so badly destroyed by bad curation and content invasiveness that the basis value of that attention has dropped trough the floor. The growing prevalence of ad blocking is only a symptom of that.

This has become bad enough it even invades special interest nonprofit rags like the AAA, American Legion, and USPSA newsletters, for example.

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#17

Post by dotancohen »

BLKNSLVR wrote: post #5

I do find it interesting that the author specifies they use an ad blocker whilst also wanting to view the industry 'from the inside'. I'm not sure there isn't a level of hypocrisy there, albeit understandable. As staunchly anti-advertising, I wouldn't include advertising on anything I publish personally, but then I also don't publish anything, so I have no pressure to change my stance. I think I've convinced myself t…

The problem is not the marketing of services and products.

The problem is the vector for tracking and for installing malware on users' browsers. I'd actually love to be notified when interesting products are available - but I block ads out of the defensive stance that the advertising industry pushed many people into.

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#18

Post by dotancohen »

paulcole wrote: post #10
beej71 wrote: post #7

I had some sites that used it years ago ca. 2006. $500/mo at peak. Then one month it suddenly halved for no apparent reason. And it kept dropping. After a while or just wasn't with the ugliness. And I learned to never count on Google. Since then I've become anti-ad and haven't had any for years. I am sorry for my embarrassing lapse in judgment. :)

Easy to become anti-ad after they stop paying lol Like me becoming anti-my-girlfriend after she dumped me

I believe that the old proverb is "sour grapes".

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#19

Post by beloch »

"I never saw most of the offending ads because of my adblocker, so I didn’t notice the changes or experience any irritation personally. "

--------

If you run a website that serves ads, whitelist it in your adblocker so you can see what your own damned site looks like to people who are still rawdogging the world wide web.

Re: After 20 years I turned off Google Adsense for my websites (2025)

#20

Post by greyface- »

BLKNSLVR wrote: post #5

I do find it interesting that the author specifies they use an ad blocker whilst also wanting to view the industry 'from the inside'. I'm not sure there isn't a level of hypocrisy there, albeit understandable. As staunchly anti-advertising, I wouldn't include advertising on anything I publish personally, but then I also don't publish anything, so I have no pressure to change my stance. I think I've convinced myself t…

There's no contradiction; ad blocker usage is common within the industry.
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