The link between a positive sentiment around context and ad effectiveness has been established. And, though there’s not yet been definitive research on the subject, the reverse seems an intuitive given. Ads running in negative or unfavorable contexts would be less effective.

So, it might seem that the recent uproar around Google YouTube ad placement could be seen as a boon for premium publishers. But as has been well-documented, a lack of marketer trust in digital advertising is bad for the entire ecosystem, not simply the bad (or careless) actors. So it is with great interest that our industry has watched Google’s YouTube brand safety saga unfold.

Here are the highlights of how the story has developed so far:

March 16, 2017

• The Guardian | Guardian pulls ads from Google after they were placed next to extremist material 

March 17, 2017

• The Times | Taxpayers are funding extremism 
• News Corp | Statement of Robert Thomson, Chief Executive of News Corp On Havas Media Group UK Decision To Pull Advertising From Google and YouTube
• Google | Improving our brand safety controls 

March 21, 2017

• Google | Expanded safeguards for advertisers 

March 22, 2017

• The Wall Street Journal | AT&T, Verizon Pull Ads From Google Over ‘Hate’ Videos
• Business Insider | The real motivations behind the growing YouTube advertiser boycott

March 23, 2017

• The Wall Street Journal | This Graphic Shows Why Google Got in Trouble Over Ad Placement
• USA Today | Google, YouTube boycott over extremist ads slams shares

March 24, 2017

• The Wall Street Journal | Google’s YouTube Has Continued Showing Brands’ Ads With Racist and Other Objectionable Videos
• Recode | YouTube’s ad mess gives advertisers leverage for what they really want: More data
• ABC News | More big brands pull ads from YouTube in widening boycott
• The Verge | YouTube is facing a full-scale advertising boycott over hate speech
• Bloomberg | YouTube’s Better-Than-TV Pitch Undermined by Offensive Video
• The Guardian | Starbucks and Walmart join growing list of advertisers boycotting YouTube
• MediaPost | ANA Issues YouTube Advisory, Tells Google ‘To Do No Harm’

March 25, 2017

• Wired | YouTube’s Ad Problems Finally Blow Up in Google’s Face

March 26

FT | Advertisers seek Google discounts in video backlash

March 27, 2017

• Business Insider | Analysts predict the YouTube advertiser boycott will cost Google $750 million
• Fortune | Why the YouTube Ad Boycott Could Cost Google $750 Million
• AdAge | Meet the Man Behind YouTube’s Sudden Ad Crisis. He Has a Patented Fix

March 28, 2017

• AdAge | Who Wins and Who Loses in YouTube’s Falling Out With Brands
• Wall Street Journal | TV Networks See an Opportunity in Google Ad Backlash

March 29, 2017

• The Wall Street Journal | TV Networks See an Opportunity in Google Ad Backlash
• AdExchanger | Premium Pubs Tout Their Alternatives Amid Brand Safety Concerns – But Will Advertisers Arrive?
• The New York Times | Chase Had Ads on 400,000 Sites. Then on Just 5,000. Same Results.

March 30, 2017

• The Financial Times | TV companies offer shelter from YouTube 
• Advertising Age | As YouTube Tinkers With Ad Formula, Its Stars See Their Videos Lose Money

March 31, 2017

• Advertising Week | 3 Digital Ad Players Cashing In on YouTube’s Brand Safety Issues

April 3, 2017

• Recode | Google says its YouTube ad problem is “very very very small” but it’s getting better at fixing it anyway
• Digiday | Big brand pullouts will have had limited impact on YouTube 
• Bloomberg | Google Updates Ads Policies Again, Ramps Up AI to Curtail YouTube Crisis
• Advertising Age | YouTube to Offer Third-Party Brand Safety Tools Following Revolt by Marketers
• INMA | With backlash against Google, YouTube ads, is it time for publishers to step up? 

April 4, 2017

• Advertising Age | YouTube Invites in Safety Inspectors, but Powers Are Limited 

April 28, 2017

• The Financial Times | Google parent Alphabet allays ad boycott concerns

May 15, 2017

• Barron’s | Several Major Advertisers Remain Wary of YouTube

October 12, 2018

• MarketWatch | YouTube advertiser boycott appears to be over

February 2019

• Axios | Companies pull ads from YouTube Again
• Adweek | Can YouTube Ever Be Completely Safe for Advertisers?