No One Paid for this Post
Posted on November 2, 2009
This post is also on my personal blog.
This weekend I bought a book of brief essays called “This I Believe,” based on an NPR project that invites people to share the core beliefs that shape our daily lives, which itself is based on an Edward R. Murrow radio show from the 1950s. Before I start reading the book, I wanted to give thought to the core beliefs that shape my daily life.
While there are several, honesty being the “best policy” is floating to the top because of an interesting conversation I had yesterday with a colleague. We were discussing the emerging code of ethics associated with blogging. The question on the table – should citizen bloggers disclose financial relationships or gifts they receive from the organizations or businesses they write about?
The FTC has spoken – yes they should. And if you don’t, Uncle Sam could come after for you with the ticket book.
Let me be quick to say that no one has offered to pay me or buy me any gifts in return for a blog post – yet! (Still waiting for Amazon to call considering how often I mention my Kindle on my personal blog.) But if they did, my core belief in the importance of honesty as a guiding principle for how humans should deal with one another would lead me to make the disclosure. Plus, I’m just a pathetic liar.
Would I hold others to this same standard? Yes, if you have been paid to make an endorsement or given some cool freebie, let me know. Your disclosure probably won’t change my evaluation of your endorsement if it is thoughtfully presented. Your lack of disclosure will nullify your POV.
But do we need government watchdogs collecting $11,000 fines, I think not. There are much bigger issues facing the Feds than the Tupperware Lady hawking plastic containers on her personal blog without telling me who writes her paycheck. After all, as a citizen blogger who loves social media, I’ll do my homework and figure out her game, probably before the Feds do.
