De-platformed Disinfo Site Sees Resurgence with Help of Alt-Right Social Platforms and Ad Networks

St. Louis AdTech startup Decide has been called out in this article on Bloomberg.

St. Louis AdTech startup Decide has been called out in this article on Bloomberg.

“A hyperpartisan website with ties to foreign actors spread divisive and misleading news about the US election and built a formidable audience online, exploiting existing fractures in American politics to attract attention and ad revenue.

“A website linked to a Macedonian native was quickly reported in 2020, and kicked off the major platforms. But now it’s back, and it has built a massive following on so-called alt tech spaces—platforms like Truth Social, Gettr, Gab and Rumble.”

“According to research from Doctor, Resist the Mainstream makes money from the online advertising companies Criteo, MGID and Decide (formerly called LockerDome), which serve up programmatic ads on its website.

This, at least in part, allowed Naumovski to donate $2,900—the maximum allowed amount by an individual contributor under FEC guidelines—to the congressional campaign of Ron Watkins, the conspiracy theorist best known for being a former administrator of 8chan and widely believed to be the “Q” figure in the QAnon conspiracy movement.”