Though many extremists operate businesses online, doing so can require considerable time and effort. Using the Internet to promote the products of others is less demanding but still profitable.

Selling Ads Online

The promotion of such products commonly involves placing ads on Web sites. Don Black charges an advertiser on his Stormfront Web site up to $15 for every 1,000 times someone views his ad, and Black claims that Stormfront welcomes nearly 3,500 visitors per week. The racist Council of Conservative Citizens Web site encourages readers to inquire about advertising rates for its "Shop-Right" page, an "On-Line Market for Southern Patriots & Euro-Folk" that features ads for an anti-immigration book, Confederate flag bumper stickers, and other items. While some extremists do charge advertisers, the payment many receive for accepting ads comes in the form of services, not cash. Many Web site hosting services used by extremists do not charge their customers but instead bring in revenue by selling space for ads on the sites created by those customers.

Taking Advantage of Non-Extremist Businesses: Referral Fees

Some online businesses pay extremists a flat fee for each new customer they refer. PayPal, a legitimate online payment service that does not hold extremist views and has upwards of six million customers, gives registered users $5 for each friend they persuade to open an account. Extremist groups such as World Church of the Creator (WCOTC), Panzerfaust Records, and Sigrdrifa have referred their supporters to PayPal. "This is a very easy way to raise much-needed funds for our holy struggle," commented Brother John B. of WCOTC in an E-mail message to the WCOTC Women’s Frontier mailing list. Tom Metzger promises extremists $50 for each project referred to the "website construction division" of his group White Aryan Resistance (WAR), calling this opportunity "a clean and quick way to help finance your operations."

Other companies pay Internet users who refer customers a percentage of the items sold to those customers instead of a flat fee. Amazon.com offers registered "Associates" rewards of up to 15% of the purchase price of items bought by customers they have referred. Web sites for the Holocaust denial organization Committee for Open Debate on the Holocaust (CODOH) and white supremacist publisher 14 Word Press have taken advantage of this opportunity. WCOTC actively encourages its members to create Web sites for participation in online affiliate marketing programs such as LinkShare and Commission Junction, thereby "generating revenue for WCOTC." Fearful of rejection from these programs on ideological grounds, WCOTC urges members to refrain from openly expressing their racism on sites they create for this purpose