I discovered this interesting post on blogging ethics at CyberJournalist. I was pretty happy to see that the number one bullet on the list is “Never plagiarize.” Some of the other items are a lot harder to comply with, especially the ones that tell you not to sensationalize. How could you run a celebrity blog otherwise?
The list of ways to be accountable is excellent, except that doing paid reviews blows a lot of those criteria out of the water. However, being open about the fact that you do is probably enough to get folks to take your entries with a grain of salt. I have only done one, but I’m hoping to do more. I’ll bet you can tell which recent post was for a site I was paid to review, too.
As mentioned in the second blog link from yesterday, being paid doesn’t mean only saying nice things. The site that sent me the review specifically noted in their user agreement that I was not required to post a positive review. If they hadn’t, I would not have signed up. I don’t see any reason not to get paid to review a site, if the owner is asking, but it’s important to be honest about what you see. How else can you hold up your virtual head?
Get off of the couch and write, better!
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Ethics, Blogging, and the Paid Review
Posted by Unknown at 8:33 AM
Labels: blogging, CyberJournalist, ethics, paid content, reviews, writing
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2 comments:
Unknown
said...
So glad I foundyour site!
I write the occasional paid post on my personal site, Little Woolgatherings, and I am always upfront with my readers. Many of them have commented that they have enjoyed those posts, specifically the ones that don't require a positive review (Blogsvertise and www.JustSayHi.com , which I've reviewed MANY times! Oh, don't get me started on THAT site!).
I've just started a new site where I can write about writing. I've been lucky enough to have had many people approach me for product and media reviews via Little Woolgatherings, I figured I had better start reserving a spot just for that sort of stuff. I'd like to build enough clout where I can ask to be compensated for my time and opinions.
I'll be back :-)
Unknown
said...
Hey - nice to "meet" you! I'll swing by and check out your blog. Thanks for the note.
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