I now assume that all ads on Apple news are scams

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Trust in Advertising in General

  • Many commenters say they now assume all online ads are scams, not just Apple News, given widespread fraud on Google, Meta, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, etc.
  • Others push back: traditional print/TV ads and many brand ads (groceries, telecoms, local shops) are generally truthful even if manipulative.
  • Several note a “golden age” when web ads were mostly legit; others point out 19th–20th century print was also full of snake oil and quack cures.
  • Distinction is drawn between:
    • outright fraud (fake products, never shipped)
    • deceptive/dark-pattern offers (shrinkflation, subscriptions)
    • normal but manipulative branding and upsell.

Apple News, Taboola, and Apple’s Brand

  • Strong disappointment that a paid, “premium” Apple service is running low‑quality, Taboola‑style chumbox ads alongside serious journalism.
  • Many see this as emblematic of Apple’s “services revenue” pivot: sacrificing user experience and trust for incremental ad dollars.
  • Some cancelled News+, removed Apple’s bundled apps, or avoid the app entirely; others still use it mainly for puzzles or access to paywalled outlets but hate the ads.
  • The fact that News+ shows ads even to paying subscribers is especially resented.

Apple’s Broader “Enshittification”

  • Long subthread argues Apple has shifted from Jobs’ “insanely great products for customers” to Cook’s financial optimization:
    • more services (TV+, Music, Fitness+, Arcade, News+)
    • more upsells, tracking, and ad surfaces (News, App Store search, TV+ promos, soon Maps).
  • Counterpoints: some services (Music, TV+, Fitness+, Arcade for kids) are praised as high quality; the rot is seen as uneven and especially bad in News.

Scam Dynamics and Platform Incentives

  • Observations that scammy advertisers can outbid legit ones because scams have huge margins; platforms have weak incentives to clean up as fraud reduction cuts revenue.
  • Discussion of intentionally bad/obvious creative (typos, crude AI images) as a possible “self‑filter” for highly gullible marks; others attribute it to incompetence and low budgets.
  • Some call for:
    • making ad platforms legally liable for scam ads, with penalties exceeding profits
    • or even banning advertising outright.

User Coping Strategies

  • Heavy reliance on ad blockers (uBlock, Pi‑hole, DNS blockers, iOS content blockers) and “banner blindness”; many find modern sites nearly unusable without blocking.
  • Widespread resolve to treat every ad as untrustworthy, rely on word‑of‑mouth and small trusted communities, while recognizing those can also be astroturfed.