GoTo.com Agrees to Remove Ad

Pay for placement search engine GoTo.com reportedly has agreed to pull a magazine advertisement that showed Muslims at prayer after an Islamic group complained that the ad was offensive.

The ad, which appeared in computer and trade magazines, included the image of kneeling Muslim men and the words: “With our search on your site, you can build a more loyal following. … OK, so they won’t worship you, but they’ll come back to your site more often.”

The Associated Press reported the company agreed to pull the ad after receiving a complaint from the Southern California office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

“We had no intention to offend anyone and we’re very sorry if in fact that’s what’s taken away from that advertisement,” Jeffrey Brewer, chief executive officer of the company, was quoted as saying.

The ad “slipped through” the company’s review process, he said. Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the council’s Southern California branch, said he applauded the company’s quick response.

“We hope that this unfortunate incident will help sensitize other companies to Muslim concerns and prevent a similar occurrence in the future,” Ayloush said.