I am responsible for moderating comments on the CBJ blog. As I checked them today, I was not surprised to find 83 new comments-82 of which were spam. I have come to expect it. While spam is a natural by-product of blogging, I continue to be taken aback at what kind of spam we’re receiving.

I am not at all shocked to find links to porn sites or advertisements for certain enlargement products. After all, the adult industry can’t often market their businesses in mainstream media, so they take the low road. Fine.

What I have a harder time fathoming is the amount of prescription drug spam we receive. These are respected products with commercials and with word-of-mouth momentum. It would be like McDonald’s or Nike spray painting their logos on a few mailboxes-nefarious and unnecessary.

Are these drug companies actually hiring spammers? They must be. I don’t see why someone would spend time spamming on behalf of a company just for fun.

My real question is about brand. Is their brand equity better just by virtue of flooding the blogosphere? What of negative brand equity? Some say it doesn’t exist and that all press is good press.

What do you think?