Submitted by John Stauber on
The Los Angeles Times is breaking new ground in the fake news business. The Associated Press reports that the paper "took the unusual step Thursday of running a front-page advertisement that resembles a news story. The ad for the new NBC program Southland [is] labeled as an advertisement at the top but occupies space previously reserved for news. The text is adjacent to a graphical display ad for the show at the bottom of the page. ... The Times said the ad was designed to stretch traditional boundaries. 'The delivery of news and information is a rapidly changing business and the Los Angeles Times is continuously testing innovative approaches,' a newspaper statement said. 'That includes creating unique marketing opportunities for our advertising partners.' Times spokeswoman Nancy Sullivan declined to say how much the newspaper was paid. NBC Universal spokesman Cory Shields did not immediately return a call seeking comment."
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