Do BuzzFeed’s Native Political Ads Cross a Line?

A major player in the explosion of online native ads, BuzzFeed is perhaps the most prominent outlet yet to promise sponsored content for political candidates. The company announced last week that it will create and sell native advertising for office seekers in 2016, a potentially lucrative move in an election cycle that is expected to see $1 billion spent on digital ads, up from just $22 million in 2008. The move could herald in a new marriage between political ad spending and journalism.