"Promoted By" Content on Daily Kos

Daily Kos from time to time will work with sponsors to bring you content that we hope you will find relevant and engaging. While serving as president of Kos Media, Will Rockafellow posted this story, "Sponsored content coming to Daily Kos," to provide details about this process.

Please see also an important update made in a comment by Susan Gardner, Daily Kos Executive Editor at the time of the story's publication in 2018. She explains ["diary" meaning "story"]:

1. The diary itself...is not paid for. When you think about it, it is impossible given our set-up to CHARGE for a diary, since anyone can sign up and write for free.

2. The “ads” on the rec [trending] and recent list are not taking up any spots that were otherwise there for community diaries. They are an addition to the rec list. And the ads are simply links to [the sponsor's] original diary.

3. No diary is promoted to the rec list in this arrangement. If ANY diary makes the rec list, it’s because the community put it there.

4. Subscribers do not see the “ads” that link to [the sponsor's] diary.

5. We will always mark any linking ads (like we did with this ad campaign) as “ads.” Users will never need to wonder if what they are reading is paid for. We will make it clear.