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Google Refuses Conservative Ad, Similar to Liberal Ad
By Jeff Johnson
CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer
May 4, 2005

(CNSNews.com) -- The world's best known Internet search engine, Google.com, stands accused of liberal political bias after allegedly refusing a conservative group's ad, which had text nearly identical to an advertisement the company previously accepted from a liberal group. Google denied the charge Tuesday and said it treats all of its users and customers fairly.

Google provides links at no cost to the searcher or the listed websites in the main section of its search results pages. But it also allows website owners and promoters to purchase advertising in a "sponsored links" section on the right side of each results page. Michael Mayzel, spokesman for Google, Inc., explained the company's philosophy regarding political advertising.

"We welcome political ads and apply our policies equally, regardless of the views of the advertiser," Mayzel told Cybercast News Service.

But William Greene, president of RightMarch.com, accused Google of censoring conservative ads that accompany search results.

"We were using Google, typed in 'Tom DeLay,' and saw all the Google AdWords on the right-hand side that came up there and they were all anti-DeLay ads," Greene said.

Greene decided to buy an advertisement supporting DeLay and to try to spend enough money to get his ad to come up on the top of the list.

"So we did that, and then we decided that - as part of this campaign to expose the hypocrisy of the Democrats who are attacking DeLay - we decided to do a specific ad against Nancy Pelosi, the House Minority Leader," Greene explained.

He noticed an anti-DeLay ad for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that stated, "The Truth About Tom DeLay - Learn about DeLay's many scandals and help us clean up the House! dccc.org." Greene attempted to purchase a similar ad that stated, "Truth About Nancy Pelosi - Learn about Pelosi's many scandals and help us clean up the House! RightMarch.com"

"That's all we did," Greene told Cybercast News Service. "We took the liberal ad and changed the words to make it a conservative ad."

But Google refused the ad.

"At this time, Google policy does not permit ad text that advocates against an individual, group or organization," Google wrote Greene on the administration page of his ad account. "As noted in our advertising terms and conditions, we reserve the right to exercise editorial discretion when it comes to the advertising we accept on our site."

"Well, that's great! They're a private organization, they can certainly make that decision" Greene said. "But then we looked, and all the anti-DeLay ads were still up, including the one we had copied word-for-word except that we changed the name."

Asked about the nearly identical ads, Mayzel said, "Both ads were taken down. Any assertion to the contrary is false."

Other anti-DeLay advertisements that were accepted by Google including, "Help Us Defeat DeLay," "Don't delay, Oust DeLay," "Tom DeLay's Rear End" and "tom delay [sic] a republican [sic] showing his true colors," among several others. Only two ads that could be construed as not negative toward DeLay were displayed: One for a "Great Conservative Book - Eyes Wide Open: What Liberals Don't Want You to Know About America!" and another exhorting viewers to, "Pray for Tom DeLay."

>> Continued -- Page 1 2

Copyright © 1998-2005 CNSNews.com - Cybercast News Service

       

 

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