Forbes’ changes blend ads, editorial

Lucia Moses of Adweek writes about the redesign of Forbes.com, which gives greater presence to advertisers.

Moses writes, “Still, while these latest changes might in some ways further discomfort those traditionalists worried about the distinction between advertising and editorial, they also mean greater transparency about where the Web site’s content comes from.

”It initially sounded like they were going to turn the site over to outside bloggers only,’ a former exec there said. ‘Taking steps to place all their new moves in context is a very good thing. Having the bloggers as part of the offerings is fine, but the basic draw for the site in general is the output of the full-time edit team.’

“Perhaps that’s why Forbes has started to spell out the roles of its contributors. Each writer now has a profile that lets the reader know if they’re a staffer or outsider contributor. As a Forbes rep explained, ‘The goal is to have as much specific information on contributors as possible.'”