- Would you be surprised to hear that the books I give away each week were sent to me (free) by authors and publishers?
- Do you think it is possible to present a fair and balanced review of a “gift”?
The FTC has been pondering these questions lately and decided to make a few changes that I wanted to mention and then get your feedback, too!
Each week, I review two books, one every Sunday (The Sunday Salon) that I get from the library or buy for myself, and then one that I give away, usually on Wednesdays.
Publishers or authors send me books for free with the understanding that I will provide a fair and balanced review on my blog. The situation works well for all involved, in my opinion — I get free books (which I pass along to you all) and the author gets “free publicity.” The publicity is not guaranteed to be glowing, but I do try to appreciate what the author was trying to accomplish even if I did not necessarily enjoy the work.
Years and years of encouraging adolescents to separate their subjective opinions (Great Expectations is boring) from their objective evaluations (Dickens creates memorable characters) has trained me to read books with a certain amount of discretion. I also try to follow John Updike’s rules for reviewing whenever possible (Two of his rules: Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt and Try to understand the failure. Sure it’s his and not yours?).
So, what does the FTC have to say about all of this? Here is an excerpt of the new guidelines:
The notice incorporates several changes to the FTC’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, which address endorsements by consumers, experts, organizations, and celebrities, as well as the disclosure of important connections between advertisers and endorsers… The revised Guides also add new examples to illustrate the long standing principle that “material connections” (sometimes payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers – connections that consumers would not expect – must be disclosed. These examples address what constitutes an endorsement when the message is conveyed by bloggers or other “word-of-mouth” marketers. The revised Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement. Thus, bloggers who make an endorsement must disclose the material connections they share with the seller of the product or service.
Now, these new guidelines would not affect my Sunday Salon reviews, since I am not receiving the books with any sort of understanding of reciprocity. (The one exception would be last Sunday’s review, which I accidentally posted on a Sunday — oops!). The library simply does not care whether or not I choose to review what I check out 
However, my giveaway books do fall under this category since I receive them with the expectation of a review. I would not go so far as to assume an endorsement of whatever I receive, but now that my blog has reached its 2 year anniversary, I do think publishers have a pretty good idea of my preferences– which is probably why I seem to enjoy the books I receive more and more as the months pass.
So, here are my questions for you, my readers…
First, did you realize that I was receiving the giveaway books for free? If not, does this surprise you? Are you now suspect of the veracity of my reviews? I have asked this question before, but not for quite a while…
Second, how should I disclose this relationship? With a link at the bottom of each review that sends readers here? Or should I mention who sent me the book at the start of each review?
I would really appreciate ANY feedback on this subject…
“Did you realize that I was receiving the giveaway books for free?”
The answer is yes-there are just too many books you gave away!
Besides, you mentioned recieving them few times, and reviews were not always positive.
I would just mention who sent you the book at the start of the review. You are always honest in your reveiws and we thank you for that and everything else you do for us on this blog!
~Renee
Thank you, Teresa and Renee! I do try to be honest, yet fair in my reviews. Occasionally, my husband thinks I “softball” a review, since he is privvy to my initial reactions
I’m on the fence about the new FTC rules. I certainly don’t mind notifying people when I have a review copy. But if we bloggers have to do it, what about newspapers, magazines, radio, television, etc.? Film and theater reviewers don’t pay for tickets usually so why don’t they disclose each and every time? It seems a slap in the face to the online community and their attempt to force some sort of control on it. Feh. Make it all or nothing. The FTC may have opened a huge Pandora’s Box with this one.
As for disclosure procedures, you might want to check out http://cmp.ly. They have a bunch of different examples of various situations with links at the bottom that you can put in the review that directs the reader to the disclosure information. Darren Rowse over at ProBlogger.net recommended this and he certainly knows his business. There are many other ways to do it as well. I just prefer to disclose the information and then not deal with it anymore.
Thank you, Jim!! What a great resource, too. I, too, think I may disclose the information in my review, but I may try the link too. I had not considered the implications of only asking the online community to disclose any relationships — very good point! I look forward to following the discussion that ensues from the new guidelines…
yes kristen i knew you received books from publishers for free that you “give” away. additionally, i also believe you are fair with your book reviews. as far as the disclosure: i think it’s up to you to decide how to handle the information your website – either way you suggested above would be fine with me.
I think it’s honest to always mention when something is free.
Hi Kristin, It seems like the easiest way to deal with disclosure would be to include the information in your standard review headline – something like; Kristen’s Freebies Herein Reviewed and Passed on to Lucky Readers. You could include some short explanation at the bottom of the post. With a standardized format you only need to decide how to deal with it once and then move on to more important things.
I don’t think the fairness of your reviews are influenced by the free books. I do question whether your choices of what to spend time reading aren’t unduly influenced by the steady arrival of free books. Or perhaps you receive so many that still have to pick and choose from them? So, a different level of bias, but perhaps a pertinent one?
Cheers!
I’m not sure how I feel about these new rules but it seems easy enough to say “I got this book from the publisher” and leave it at that. I think that you are fair in your reviews and appreciate when you post. I have added several books to my TBR list simply because of your review.
I would have to agree with Dana’s comments. You seem to be fair in the reviews and really why wouldn’t you be? What would the advantage for you if you weren’t? I assumed you were given your books and then passing them on. Otherwise, that would be very pricey to be doing so many giveaways. That doesn’t change my opinion in any way though.
You could start each review with” Book received by Publisher”. Easy.
I also liked Jim’s comments as well. Why is this just for the bloggers and the online community? He has a valid point when he mentions film and theater reviewers who get their tickets for free.
Good Luck to you.
-Heather
I am not surprised that you receive books from publishers for reviews. I do not feel that would impact your opinion of the book. I am not so sure I would feel the same way if I knew you were being paid for your reviews – you know, not wanting to bite the hand that feeds you! That is my two cents and while I have your ear, I love your reviews and frequently check your write-ups for my reading selections.
I agree, Rebecca… but is it dishonest to not mention a free gift?
Thank you, Cathy — I’m so glad my reviews seem fair, too. I must admit, when I have to write a negative one, I try to find a picture of the author and then imagine that this person is sitting across from me…
Good idea, Kjersti… and I agree that I do not have as much control over what I’m reading than I’m used to. The Sunday reviews are completely of my choice (or the choice of my book club), but the giveaways are dictated by what I’m offered. I do tend to turn down those books that just do not seem appealing for one reason or another, too. But it’s kind of fun to jump into whatever crosses my path, too!
Thank you, Dana!! I hope my reviews have steered you in a good direction…
Thank you, Heather! And you make a good point about whether receiving the books for free would even influence my opinion. The worst case scenario would be publishers shunning me, but if I wasn’t enjoying what they were sending then this wouldn’t be much of a loss, would it!? Good food for thought — thank you!
Thank you for your kind words, Nan! So true about getting paid, too — which leads me to another thought… I DO get paid for any books bought from my site (through Amazon). I wonder if my readers know this? Maybe another topic for an upcoming post!!
I think it should be sufficient to mention at the beginning of your review who sent the book to you. I don’t question your reviews as you don’t keep the books for yourself. By the way – love your site!
I knew you were receiving at least some of the giveaway books for free as ARC’s. If you were receiving some kind of monetary compensation for these books, I would wonder about the honesty of your reviews. However, I don’t question them based on the fact that you simply received the book for free. I recently participated in a book club on Barnes & Noble’s website where I received the ARC for free, then had to review the book. Knowing that the author was joining the discussion made me soften my review a bit, but I still was honest in the fact that I thought the first few chapters were very slow and disorganized. I’ve always read books purely for pleasure, and found it more difficult than I expected to focus on what the author was trying to accomplish, rather than basing my enjoyment of the book on my own preferences.
Disclosing the fact that the book is an ARC, and where you got it from, at the start of the review is sufficient enough for me for disclosing the relationship.
I didn’t know that you got paid for books bought through your website at Amazon.
Heather H.
Hi Heather!! Thank you for your comment! I’m definitely writing a post this Tuesday about Amazon now… I had a very similar experience with Barnes & Noble First Look program…. My discussion group was pretty tough on the author, but I know I softened my negative opinions a bit. For one thing, the author’s picture popped up every time I contributed to the discussion, so I had a hard time being to negative while staring at her sweet smile!!
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