Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Food for Thought: FTC and the "Blogger Law"

Good evening, everyone!  (or morning, depending on where and when you are reading this post)  Sorry for the latest of another update....had to take care of business and settle some of the remaining pieces with last week's accident.  No worries, it's all falling into place...but enough with my excuses, let's move on to the topic of THIS entry.

Earlier this week, we in the blogging world received slightly disturbing news.  It seems that the FTC (Federal Trade Commision) has just passed a law that mandates all bloggers must clearly post any "payment" they receive in relation to a post or review.  Long story short, most blogger sites I visit already include a line (at the very least) in their post stating where they obtained the book they are reviewing.  It's just a common courtesy to show our appreciation to whomever helped that title come our way. 

So why am I posting a "Food for Thought" about this when it seems so cut and dry?  (Good question...here's your answer...)  Although I don't have an issue with listing this information (I always have and would....), the question I pose is this.....in the past, this info was merely a line within a blog post.  You read it and moved on.  Now that SO much attention is being brought to it, will that change how YOU interpret the review?  I mean, if you see that the blogger received the book as a "courtesy" (free), are you more inclined to believe that the post is truly their opinion?  Or will you write it off if it's purely in the books favor?

Consider this opinion to your thoughts and opinions....let's see what YOU've got to say!
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3 comments:

  1. Tales of WhimsyOctober 8, 2009 at 10:27 AM

    A. This really burns my britches.
    B. You're right most of us do this anyway. So it's not a huge deal.
    C. My question is do you only have to mention it when it was free or do you have to list how you got the book every time?
    D. I won't let it affect my perception of book reviews. But it is a fine question you pose.

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  2. MelanieOctober 8, 2009 at 10:33 AM

    I think that blogger's give their honest opinions when they review a book, regardless of how they obtained it.

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  3. GinaOctober 8, 2009 at 10:42 AM

    Juju: Good question...the more I read about it, the stranger it gets. From the looks of it, it might be "safer" (so crazy to have to use that world in the blogging world) to list it every time. Some additional information I've seen recently seems to say that if you receive a copy of the book to read for review, you're going to need to send it back afterward or risk fines.... ??

    Melanie: I whole-heartedly agree! I mean that's the whole point of having a blog, right? Self-expression! =0)

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