The Atlantic wants you to stop talking about its Scientology native ad imbroglio. Like, really, get over it.
“It’s been 10 months now, and it’s still being brought up,” Scott Havens, president of the Atlantic, said at the Digiday Publishing Summit in Miami this week. He has grown weary of being “the poster child of what not to do.”
In January, the Atlantic posted an odd advertorial package for the Church of Scientology that touted the religion’s growth under its leader, David Miscavige. Readers (and even some Atlantic writers) were confused and angry. The Atlantic swiftly apologized for the overreach and today swears it has learned from the mess.
“For a moment in January, I thought we had unraveled 155 years of trust with our readership,” Havens added. “I don’t want to go through that again.”
In short, the Atlantic has moved on. And it wants you to move on, too. But some people have a hard time letting go. As recently as a month ago, the New York Times was still writing about the brouhaha as a cautionary tale. The Atlantic has since created advertising guidelines on how it deals with native ads and posted them on its site. Item No. 1: “The Atlantic will not allow any relationship with an advertiser to compromise The Atlantic’s editorial integrity.”
And while Havens said that the company – and perhaps even the industry as a whole – is better off for the episode, he “wouldn’t want anybody to go through that.”
Image via Flickr
-
‘Becoming a vertical’: How Complex’s research arm turned into a 7-figure revenue stream
Last year, Complex Collective doubled its number of clients from six to 12 brands, including Banana Republic, the CDC and The Advisory Council.
-
Member ExclusiveMedia Briefing: Publishers eye opportunity to close the loop with retailers
This week’s Media Briefing looks at how publishers are discussing content syndication opportunities with retailers that could help to address advertisers’ retail media pain points.
-
Microsoft’s ad revenue hit $10B, and it’s investing — is it a sleeping giant about to wake?
Microsoft's ad revenues hit $10 billion in the same year it spent big on ad tech. What exactly does it have in store for Xandr?
-
SponsoredHow online commerce platforms can deliver safer shopping experiences
Marni Levine, vice president, commerce operations, Meta In the wake of the pandemic, commerce underwent a rapid shift online, exponentially accelerating and forcing businesses of all sizes to adapt. Now moving into 2022, these trends will only continue as people have grown accustomed to shopping online more for all their needs. According to a PwC […]
-
Why publishers are using hoteling software to manage their hybrid workforces
Publishers like Quartz and BuzzFeed are using hoteling software to manage employees who are coming in to work from the office.
-
The Rundown: Horizon Media’s latest report IDs trends brands need to embrace in 2022
Coining a new term or two along the way, Horizon Media's trends report touches on areas such as digital privacy, contactless living, environmental goals, and the need for downtime.
