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January 15, 2005

The Transparency Of Bloggers

Precisely!

Bloggers should disclose --prominently and repeatedly-- when they are receiving payments from individuals or organizations about whom or which they are blogging. Period. Lawyers live with codes of ethics that detail conflicts, so I guess it is ingrained in some bloggers, but this is very simple. Transparency is the key. I take no money from political candidates or causes, only from my law clients --who are all landowners of one sort or another, from churches and schools to home owners or home builders-- my law school, my publisher and various newspapers/magazines/text merchants who pay me to write, Salem Communications which pays me to talk, and various advertisers who run the blog-ads to your right or for whom I voice advertisements. I get paid to make speeches. I get paid to moderate debates. I am a professional opinion-giver, but no one owns or can buy the content of my political/media/legal opinions.

This issue of bloggers potentially being on the take is going to become a greater problem as the blogosphere continues its phenomenal growth, and as those who would pay a price increasingly realize the power of blogs to effectively persuade the masses. That it is being seriously discussed at this - still relatively early - point in the evolution of the blogosphere will help to define the ethical ground rules that serious bloggers need follow - to make this medium one that is widely considered a credible and legitimate one by the general public.

UPDATE: I completely agree with Kathryn Jean Lopez. Very well stated.

Posted at 12:18 PM Pacific