Bloggers have always been able to say whatever they want and hustle some cash. In the Digital Wild West there’s been little enforcement of laws that focus on compensation for endorsements.
That seemingly neutral post on that seemingly random blog, with a glowing product review may have been the result of the author receiving a free gift (gasp).
There isn’t a way for you to know how fair & balanced the reporting is unless the blog you are reading discloses the payment arrangements or compensation from companies mentioned. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is about to change that. The FTC plans to clarify existing law to cover blogs.
The laws currently in place ban deceptive and unfair business practices. The new guidelines will be clarified to cover anyone writing a personal journal online. That would be you (and me), blogger. The details of enforcement are not specific yet, but would most likely focus on violators who repeatedly ignore warnings and could then be sued by the Justice Department.
What does all this mean? If you blog about how awesome the cake by Janie’s Cakes was at the wedding you shot last weekend– you might have to disclose that Janie gave you a free cake for your wedding in exchange for publicity. Get ready with a really small font.
Via | The Salt Lake Tribune
Here is a link to a really long wordy government document that might not help you understand better, but will make you feel proud for having slogged through it. Impress your friends.
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5 Comments at "FTC to Regulate Blogs"
am I the only one to find this a little sad? do we really need regulated that much in our lives? does our government really think we are all that stupid, that we don’t question where info comes from?
for the totally off chance any gov’t worker might be reading, look away quick, I’m about to verbalize some seriously messed up thoughts that might hurt your world view of all those people who “need your help”. ready? ::I think the majority of people are intelligent enough to realize when they are viewing an ad.:: whoa! where did that come from?! that is one ca-ray-zie idea there!
and really, if they are online reading a blog already, it isn’t all that hard for them to do a google search on whatever awesome cake/gadget/gizmo/service they just read about. it’s called media literacy. shocking, I know…
No trisha, you’re not alone. Regulations like these would seem to violate the ‘no fed. regulating interstate-commerce’ part of the constitution. All they’re supposed to do is provide a common currency.
Think you can get just ignore any noxious language from the FTC? I’d like to see someone try to do so and knock down efforts like these. Anyone want to try?
The thing that I find aggravating is that it isn’t required on tv. The majority of us don’t get money for the reviews. It is more like we got a free cake for our wedding to review, not the review and then the cake. I don’t see David Pogue declaring how he got everything he reviews free in order to review it.
I have to disagree. (Here are far too many in this world who are inadequately skeptical, which is why televangelists exist. Stopping a few con artists doesn’t hurt my feelings.
I for one don’t think that the majority of us should suffer for the few who may be inadequately skeptical. People need to learn common since. I am sick and tired of the government sticking their fingers in every aspect of our lives. our freedoms get stripped from us one after another while the general public just sits by letting it happen.
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