I’m not sure that many respected companies would want to be around such a controversial site.

One thing about conservative political organizations is that they prefer to operate by hiring a PR firm or a consultant. And there are a lot of what have been call “Internet snake-oil salesmen” operating as GOP/conservative online consultants. Like you said, they get good fees for pushing their clients.

It was much the same way when I was a print journalist. A think-tank, activist group or lobby shop, for the most part, is not going to pick up the phone and call a reporter directly to pitch a story. Instead they’ll hire a PR agency go-between, because that’s more “professional.”

While journalists and PR people are kind of hostile, I’ve found that cultivating relationships with PR people can be very helpful in terms of getting leads and access for interviews, etc. You work with them, they’ll work with you. But *monetizing* your work is always a tough gig for a journalist. If you’re all about the money, PR is more lucrative, but you don’t get to be picky about who or what you promote.

Well, yes, crappy in that you’re losing revenue, but not crappy on the part of the advertisers, really. Regardless of whether or not it’s a good idea to pull their advertising, they have a right to spend their money where they wish – and you have a need to change your business model to reflect the current environment.

If all you meant by “Pretty crappy” was, “Dammit, I liked that money and I’m bummed” that’s fine. But if it was aimed at the advertisers… well, welcome to the realities of running a business!

Now you have a chance to flex and adapt, right?

;^ )