The contextual interplay between advertising and online disinformation: How brands suffer from and amplify deceptive content

Abstract

The proliferation of online disinformation has become of major societal concern. Because of online programmatic algorithms, brands may find their ads running on disinformation websites alongside disinformation. In this experimental study (N = 617), we investigate people’s brand-related and news-related responses in this context. Results show that when an advertised brand is displayed on the same webpage as a disinformation article, brand attitude and brand trust are negatively affected; this effect is even more pronounced when the brand is thematically congruent with the disinformation article. This suggests that brands (especially congruent ones) might be contaminated by disinformation. In addition, presenting an ad alongside a disinformation article increases the credibility of the article, as well as people’s level of agreement with the article’s content. This seems to suggest that advertising can lend validity to disinformation and amplify its (harmful) effects. These results have important and timely managerial and societal implications.