Forbes, ad-blockers, and bullshit

If you run an ad-blocker, Forbes presents you with this screen claiming that you need to disable your ad-blocker to enjoy their “ad lite” experience.

If you actually listen, Forbes provides you with whatever the opposite of an “ad lite” experience is called—ads everywhere, 55+ different tracking and analytics scripts, and all the social media buttons you could ask for.

When I encounter this, I’ll often just turn off JavaScript (nobody does that, right?), but on Forbes, that gets you a blank white screen.

Here’s the thing: I get it. Publishing good content costs money. Advertising pays for that content.

But when the experience is this hostile to the people who read your publication, is hard to feel bad for media organizations who complain about ad-blockers.

Ads aren’t inherently evil. Ads that have such a strong, negative impact on the user experience are.