Google and Ask.com are helping to promote Anorexia. I'm pissed off!

Last night while surfing the web for stories for today's post, I came across the same "Anorexic get skinny using" Google AdSense ad for Hoodia that I blasted Google for putting on my blog. (click on image for full size) I found the ad on The Skinny Website, a blog about celebrity weight, diet, and gossip. Ironically, this horrid ad was in a post about Ashley Olsen who's been treated for an eating disorder.

I asked Google why they would allow companies to advertise in such a harmful way, and all I got was "We are doing further research into this matter." The Hoodia ads from this particular wretched company no longer appear on my blog, but obviously they continue to be able to advertise elsewhere under the Google AdSense program. Unbelievable! Again, why Google do you allow this company and others like it to advertise a weight loss product in a hurtful and irresponsible way?

From The Skinny Website, I somehow got to the 43Things.com site where people list things they want to do. I landed on this young woman's page who wants to become anorexic. (Not to pick on her but on Ask.com.) In the side bar, is a list of Sponsored Links which includes that same horrid Hoodia ad, and to my utter dismay an ad from Ask.com on "Become Anorexic." I could not believe my eyes. There are more of these Ask.com ads around the 43Things site related to the topic of Anorexia. I cannot believe that this high profile search company would actually pay for text ads helping people become Anorexic. When you click on this particular Ask.com "Become an Anorexic" ad this is what you get.

Now it gets worse. I did a Google search with the words "become anorexic" and I got this result with yet another sponsored ad from Ask.com on how to "Become Anorexic" plus that damn Hoodia ad. Ask.com's hoffific ad is even on Google. Un-fracking unbelievable! I just about wanted to hit the ceiling. Actually, I went out of my fricking mind. Look at this! What the hell is wrong with you Ask.com. You paid for sponsored links to help people search for ways to become anorexics. It's one thing for people to type in the search term on their own, but it is a whole different thing to promote your search engine as a source to help people become anorexic. I am utterly speechless and pissed off! I wrote Ask.com, to understand why they would do this. Stay tuned.

My stomach is just churning, and I am just feeling thoroughly disappointed in Google and Ask.com. People, if you see heinous ads like this call it out. Write Google and Ask.com and express your outrage. These two are public companies, and they have a responsibility to be accountable and to be decent. My goodness! What happened to corporate decency?