For us, Wonkette lost its appeal once Ana Marie Cox left and Wonkette became a Wonk.

That and two other blogs, urban travel site Gridskipper and music blog Idolator, will have new homes. Valleywag editor Owen Wilson republished the formal announcement email from Denton about the cuts:

Why these three sites? To be blunt: they each had their editorial successes; but someone else will have better luck selling the advertising than we did.

Everybody says that the internet is special; that advertising is still moving away from print and TV; and Gawker sites are still growing in traffic by about 90% a year, way faster than the web as a whole. But it would be naive to think that we can merely power through an advertising recession. We need to concentrate our energies, and the time of Chris Batty’s sales group, on the sites with the greatest potential for audience and advertising.

In dropping three of his fifteen blogs, Denton said in his email Gawker Media only gave up about 3 percent of its total audience. If the ad bubble really does burst, as Denton has been expecting for a couple of years, Gawker Media will be a little ahead of the retrenching everyone else will have to do online.

The ad is covered in a thick layer of irony, informing its target market that the Times is the "ultimate guide to global travel," advising on:

Where to Stay; Where to Eat; What to Do; When to Go

It appeared above an article posted on the travel section of GridSkipper.com, a Gawker Media site. The article was titled "New York Coke Bars."

If you’re the temperance-minded, you may already be wondering what’s wrong with Coca-Cola, or the soda-jerk joints that serve it. That association would be quickly displaced upon seeing the graphic accompanying the article featuring a mirror with a powder line and a rolled-up dollar bill. 

It becomes clear this is a guide to "some of the city’s favorite indoor skiing," sponsored by the New York Times. And if you, the cokehead reader, know any blow-friendly bars that Amanda Kludt, the writer of the piece, forgot to mention, be sure to let GridSkipper know.

Just make sure it hasn’t been mentioned in the comments section. Commentator "Wasp vs. Stryper" was appalled at the list’s incompleteness, reminding Kludt of The Annex, The Dark Room, 200 Orchard, 205, The Box, and Thor, all of which can be expected to be raided next week.

Regardless of the ironic hilarity of it, it seems doubtful that the NYT would openly endorse public cocaine use – unless there’s an editorial I’ve missed. The Village Voice, maybe, High Times, but the NY Times, established paper of record for the greatest city on Earth and most widely-respected news organization anywhere?

Though contextual advertising is most definitely the future in this industry, and a huge organization like the Times can absorb accidental associations, smaller, more sensitive advertisers would probably be quite upset having their priceless brand names associated with the urban nightclub drug subculture.

So, needless to say, but it’s going to be said anyway, artificial intelligence has a ways to go yet before it can recognize certain moral and cultural nuances with enough skill to choose which ads are appropriate. Google says they’ve gotten quite good at this.

Doubleclick, the digital advertiser the NYT went through for this placement, apparently has some problem solving to address – even if artificial intelligence is really, really hard. 

… and Lifehacker, which will examine software downloads and time-saving Web sites, Mediapostreports. Both blogs already have corporate marketers on board: Sony Electronics will sponsor Lifehacker, while Cheaptickets will likely sponsor Gridskipper. As I write this, both sites are password protected, but they will be live later today.

More from Mediapost:

“Nick Denton, publisher of Gawker Media, said that large businesses appear more comfortable with blogs now than in the past. “Blogs were more experimental back when Audi and Nike advertised on them,” said Denton. “Companies are more open to advertising on the medium and discussing the campaigns.”

But the Gawker Media sites already are so large, and with such a loyal following, that they might attract large advertisers easier than most blogs, said Steve Rubel, public relations strategist and blogger at Micropersuasion.com. “Gawker Media crosses onto the gray area between blogs and media properties. With Gawker’s readership and loyalty, it is almost in a class by itself.”"

Steve Rubel is a PR strategist with nearly 16 years of public relations, marketing, journalism and communications experience. He currently serves as a Senior Vice President with Edelman, the largest independent global PR firm.

He authors the Micro Persuasion weblog, which tracks how blogs and participatory journalism are changing the public relations practice.