The IPA has today echoed the cross-industry call for advertisers not to block the term Coronavirus, which is starving news brands – and British journalism – of much-needed revenue.
As reported, news sites are seeing an enormous uptick in readership amid the Coronovirus – for some a 50% increase in page views. Unfortunately, however, due to some advertisers blacklisting the term Coronavirus these news brands are losing out on vital income.
Says Nigel Gwilliam, Director of Media Affairs, IPA:
“We are active champions of ensuring brand safety in our industry and advocate certain blacklists to avoid brands being associated with unsavoury content. The Coronavirus, however, is outside of this requirement. As this world-wide pandemic unfolds on a minute-by-minute timeframe, consumers are actively seeking the most up-to-date, in-depth, high-quality journalism that is more often than not funded by advertising. Brands should therefore not be blocking the term Coronavirus. The more we can fund journalism, the better we can inform the public of the key messages to conquer this crisis together.”
