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FTC To Regulate Bloggers
By Virginia Prescott on Monday, June 29, 2009.
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When we read online reviews of the newest car or gadget, we might tune in to those opinions like we would a trusted friend. Many companies are capitalizing on that trust. They see potential marketing opportunities and are willing to hand out merchandise, gift cards, and even cash for the good press.
The perks are so plentiful now that the Federal Trade Commission wants to make sure consumers know who is paying for these sponsored blog posts. New guidelines, likely to be approved this summer, will require bloggers to disclose if they're getting paid to write about a product. Bloggers would also be held responsible for any false claims they make on their sites.
This is the first time the FTC has turned its regulatory eye on the blogosphere. Rich Cleland is assistant director of the FTC's Division of Advertising Practices and he joins us to explain the new guidelines.
And for a blogger's perspective, we’re joined by Liz Gumbinner, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Cool Mom Picks, a shopping blog that does not accept payment for its reviews of everything from clothes to bedding to bath products for kids.
Business Week: Blogola: The FTC Takes On Paid Posts
Associated Press: FTC to Patrol Bloggers Product Reviews, Payments Under Fire
(Photo by xrrr via Flickr/Creative Commons)
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Both Virginia Prescott and the FTC official she interviewed tended to use the warm, fuzzy, voluntary sounding word "guidelines" interchangeably with more legalistic and mandatory terms such as "rules" or "regulations." Please consider the difference and strive for accuracy. (NHPR does same above with "comment guidelines.")
The AP article you linked to mentioned that the FTC would be applying the commercial endorsement guidelines to affiliate marketing. You didn't discuss that on the show, and I just wondered what the FTC is thinking on that subject. In my opinion, it is a different animal altogether.