The FTC made an announcement.
I have an announcement.
I will accept freebies and write glowing reviews about them and not disclose nothin’. Nada. Bupkis.
Blogger-payola accepted here.
Cash is also accepted via PayPal.
Screw the gummit.
Here’s what the FTC has to say, via ReadWriteWeb…
According to new guidance from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), bloggers who fail to disclose that they have received freebies when they write about a product can now be fined up to $11,000 per post. The new FTC Guide Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising argues that any post of a blogger who receives “cash or in-kind payment to review a product” should be considered an endorsement. Because these posts are now officially considered endorsements, bloggers who receive freebies must now disclose this fact on their site.
I’m a rebel. A I’ll take my chances. This statement of new policy is me to throwing tea in the harbor.
Keep sending me Macanudos, books, M&M’s, Johnsonville Brats and Aprons, and I will gladly use your product and write glowingly about it. Or I will write nothing at all, like Mother told me.
The FTC can suck my brat and kiss my Macanudo. What I do in the privacy of my home and what I pay for it isn’t up to them.
As a matter of fact, PR firms need to get on the stick and get this stuff in the hands of bloggers like me pronto. I’m sure they are sitting on piles of freebie stuff and now are just freaking out like the biggie bloggers.
What about ethics? Ptooey, I spit on the shoes of ethics. If you want ethics, read this blog. If you want consumer advice, read this blog. If you want me to have tons of free stuff, read my blog.
FTC? Aren’t they the ones that have “red flags” to protect consumers from phone fraudsters, mail order scams, sweepstakes rip-offs, credit counseling crooks, and their ilk?
Yeah, I’ll take my chances. SEND FREEBIES TODAY!
I’m cranking up the positive vibes already.
Impressed with my challenge to gummit authority? Don’t be… get this:
FTC Assistant Director of Advertising Practices Richard Cleland admitted to CNN that there will be no group actually enforcing the guidelines. There is also no standardization regarding how the disclosure should appear other than that it should be clearly visible.
Which fits in perfectly with this blog: nobody actively in charge, no standardization and clearly invisible.
