Will Conflicts of Interest Sink Blogging?
The rise of social media has brought with it a new class of customers/entrepreneurs: mommy bloggers. They began writing about their children, relationships, and shopping trips, but soon evolved into a word-of-mouth marketing machine. Earlier this year I wrote about just how powerful the mom market had become, due in large part to the throng of bloggers reviewing products, writing about their experiences as customers, and taking down brands they felt were dishonest or unsafe. It seems some of that power went to their heads, and now they're coming back down to Earth.
When more than 1,500 women bloggers gathered last month at the annual BlogHer Conference, one of the most talked-about subjects was ethical concerns, due in part to a Newsweek article, "Trusted Mom or Sellout?" The article exposed the fact that many of these bloggers accept free products as payment for good reviews, and often don't disclose the connections they have to companies the write about.
In response, some of the attendees created a site called Blog With Integrity, which asks mommy bloggers to sign a pledge that they'll disclose conflicts of interest in their writing. Some, who blamed the problem on an inundation of press releases, called for a "PR Blackout" week where moms should go back to writing about their kids and their lives, not products.
Perhaps the biggest development, though, is that the FTC is taking a closer look at bloggers, particularly those that offer product testimonials. Its "Guidelines Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising," expected to pass later this year, allows the agency to fine bloggers who don't disclose financial interests. A PC World article about the policy changes points out that professional journalists who review products RETURN them after the article is written (Most of the media companies I've worked for prohibit acceptance of any gifts over a certain amount - usually $20 - and only allows small gifts in cases where it doesn't influence content.)
How will this negative attention impact the blogging world? It's too early to tell, but the days of deceptive practices may soon come to an end. What do you think? Do you trust blogs that review products and brands, or are you skeptical of what the writers' motivations are?
Additional Commentary:
As a journalist, I'm glad the FTC is cracking down on these ethical violations. The FCC should take a closer look as well. Many people in the media are losing their jobs, in part, because there's so much free information available on unregulated blogs (and elsewhere online), often just re-posted content that isn't properly sourced.
These "mommy bloggers" may have thought they were providing a great service by volunteering their time and being rewarded with free stuff, but the people who review products for a living that may now be in the unemployment line would disagree. Hopefully the public will soon realize that these "mommy blogs" aren't the only type of media that's unregulated and can't be trusted to provide the same level of unbiased, fact-checked information that experienced, paid journalists report.
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All I can say to the FTC is "good luck" on trying to expect financial disclosures from blog authors endorsing products. Blogging is indeed different from other media. They are suggesting that someone who wants to tell her friends and neighbors about a new product she has tried and liked now has to consider an official ethical standard apart from good sense. Most readers are already wise to blatant product endorsements and loss of readership, not fines, is the ultimate disciplinary action.
What the FTC has to learn is how blogs are used in practice, and simply commenting on a blog by astute readers about possible conflicts of interest will ultimately be more damaging than any fine.
free reading...
This is the same problem with traditional journalism, infact it's important that people reads different blogs, newspapers etc.. to have an idea more clear of the world