Maybe statistically even a bad ad skews the population on average?
Basically this. If you are consciously aware of advertising, you are already largely outside the advertiser’s demo. You could also avoid SEO manipulation by, say, using a different search engine or always getting your recommendations from friends or something like that. But you don’t do that, because you don’t care that much. This is how most people feel about all advertising. They put no mental energy into selecting or avoiding companies based on their ads, because they don’t care.
Basically this. If you are consciously aware of advertising, you are already largely outside the advertiser’s demo. You could also avoid SEO manipulation by, say, using a different search engine or always getting your recommendations from friends or something like that. But you don’t do that, because you don’t care that much. This is how most people feel about all advertising. They put no mental energy into selecting or avoiding companies based on their ads, because they don’t care.