Topple CEO Brian Aitken recently joined LandTrust founder & CEO Nic De Castro on the Outside’s Insiders podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about censorship in digital advertising, the blackout facing outdoor brands on Big Tech platforms, and how Topple is rebuilding access for the firearms, hunting, and outdoor industries.
The full episode is now live and available to stream.What the Episode Covers
Why legal outdoor-industry brands are still being banned by Google, Meta, and major ad exchanges
How “brand safety” was weaponized to quietly blacklist entire categories of lawful products
The origin story of Topple and why it was built as the free-speech alternative to mainstream ad platforms
How publishers benefit from leaving Big Tech and working directly with the advertisers they actually serve
The difference between access to advertising and permission to exist online
Nic summed it up well in his write-up of the episode:
“Sometimes the blacklist becomes your client list. That’s what Brian built Topple for — to give legal brands a way back into the digital marketplace.”
Why This Conversation Matters
Outdoor brands aren’t struggling because demand is shrinking. They’re struggling because access has been removed.
When legal businesses can’t advertise, they can’t grow. When publishers are blocked from monetizing, they can’t survive. And when platforms decide what speech is “allowed,” markets stop being free.
Topple was built to fix that.
We operate on one rule:If it’s legal to sell, it’s legal to advertise.
Listen to the Episode
🎧 Stream the full conversation here: From Blacklists to Breakthroughs: Brian Aitken and the Fight for Free Speech in Outdoor Advertising
Or find it in our new Spotify playlist featuring Topple interviews, investor conversations, and industry podcasts: Topple’s Spotify Podcast Playlist
