• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, April 11, 2016

Forget about search, display, and video ads -- programmatic -- new or old school. The Boston Globe found a way to use U.S. First Amendment rights to create content that will likely gain more eyeballs on the front page of its Sunday's Ideas section, along with a piece in the opinion section, than all advertising strategies combined.

The satire and commentary -- which The Boston Globe dated April 9, and is produced by the Globe's editorial board, not its newsroom -- shows a fictitious front page detailing the kind of world Donald Trump would create if elected president. In addition to stirring the pot, it creates leads for retargeting on search and Facebook.

In a video editorial, The Boston Globe said the front page was "an exercise in taking a man at his word," and wanted to show what the world could be a year from now if Donald Trump becomes president of the United States.

The strategy might have backfired. On Facebook in the comments section of the trending piece, some applaud the commentary, while others call it "rhetoric without consequence." John K. Federici wrote: "As a democrat since 1977 and sorry to say voted for Obama twice. Trump has inspired me to change like the 20,000 in Massachusetts, all most 50,000 in Pennsylvania and most of my Union brothers and sisters support Trump 100 % we don't care what the Globe thinks." The comment received 1,197 likes.

The banner headline, dated a year from Sunday, reads: "Deportations to begin, President Trump calls for tripling if ICE force; riots continue." The Boston Globe based the articles on Trump's Twitter Tweets and his policies to create the stories on the page, which includes in-depth articles about his actions as if he has taken the helm as president.

One story on the fake front page describes how "U.S. soldiers refuse orders to kill ISIS families." It details how the military faces a crisis after days of widespread unrest in the ranks over White House orders to kill relatives of ISIS militants.

Another piece outlines a new libel law targeting "absolute scum in press," stating how the Republican-controlled Congress passed sweeping changes to libel law in the United States, moving the bill to Trump's desk, who promised to sign it.

"That's what happens when China launches a trade war with the United States," per The Boston Globe.

The Boston Globe could do the same for Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders to demonstrate freedom of speech through unbiased and neutral news organizations.

SearchBlog reached out to The Boston Globe for numbers on Web site visits. The media outlet acknowledged the request, but has not sent any concrete numbers. We will update the post when they come in.