Native advertising’s latest critic? That would be John Oliver

If you’ve read any site that covers the media in the past couple of years, then you’ve probably seen a lot of debate around native advertising — the phenomenon of presenting adverts as if they were typical content on the platform.

Given the low click-through rates banner ads provide, it’s the way a lot of publications have had to go. Some organisations, such as Buzzfeed, have done it so well that it’s their sole form of income.

That does not, however, mean that there aren’t still massive issues around it, as Last Week Tonight host John Oliver points out.

To illustrate his point, he takes on a recent piece in The New York Times, sponsored by Netflix series Orange is the New Black. Most agreed that it was an excellent piece of native advertising, but as Oliver points out:

“The reporting is real, and the sponsored branding is minimal, but it is still an ad. It’s like hearing the one Katy Perry song that you like. You think, sure this is the best possible iteration of Katy Perry, but it still feels wrong to be listening to this.”