In defence of bloggers (and why it’s okay to be paid)
Over the weekend Telegraph journalist Jonathan Moran criticised bloggers for a supposed lack of ethics and rules around disclosure. In this guest post, first published on Woogsworld, blogger Mrs Woog responds.
Jonathon Moran is a journalist for Murdoch’s Telegraph. On Saturday, a full page was dedicated to Moran, so he could vent his frustrations on how irritating fashion bloggers are.
The opening paragraph reminds me of when you hear people say “I am not racist, but…”
He wrote (of blogger Nicole Warne):
Bloggers do my head in, particularly those of the fashion variety. I’m not bitter, I just think you need to earn your position in the industry and anyone can be a blogger.”
And you cannot disagree with the fact that anyone can indeed, be a blogger! But if you want to earn your stripes in journalism, you need to start at the bottom….
BUT WAIT! Bloggers are not journalists!
“No disrespect to Warne – we’re sure she’s lovely. But the fact she has 590,000 plus Instagram followers (a phenomenal jump from the 71,000 she had in May when she was paid by BlackBerry to be an ambassador) does not make her a celebrity in our books.
“Warne has 19,000 Twitter followers and is currently on a freebie around Europe as a guest of Contiki in exchange for daily social media posts.
“This month she’s also been announced as the summer face of Westfield Bondi Junction.”
The truth is that many bloggers are throwing caution into the wind and are turning professional. This is not as easy as it sounds. It takes work. A lot of it.
Bloggers are “content creators”. We “report” on things that might be of interest to our readers. We have an intimate knowledge of just who that demographic is. I am not a part of Nicole Warne’s demographic. Fashion to me comes down to, does it fit, is it comfy and are there any visible stains on it.
The reason why Nicole Warne is in the front rows at fashion shows is because she too, knows her audience and can deliver the brands’ messages directly to them. And by all accounts, she has a shit load of readers.
Interestingly enough, I have also seen journalists carefully following bloggers on platforms of social media. I myself have seen many of my blog posts reworked and published, sometimes with very little changes.
It is also interesting to note that I have had dozens of emails from working journalists about how to blog, and what do they need to do to get started.
Hmmmmm.
And now for disclosure…
Of course buying followers is not credible! If a blogger has a huge load of followers and little or no community interaction, it is safe to say that they are full of shit and deluded.
As far as disclosure is concerned, the blogging community is starting to wake up to the fact that it is OK TO GET PAID FOR YOUR WORK! I run a commercial blog and I own that fact. There is nothing wrong with it. A few well known bloggers do have a reputation for non-disclosure, but they are far outnumbered by those who are doing the right thing.
And in my opinion, these laws will be introduced to Australia soon. They have to be. We run a few years behind the blogging scene in the States.
Again this comes back to morals. Recently I was asked to join a campaign for a brand that was neither a good fit for the blog, and something that I personally do not use. I gave them my fee, which was a live pony, and we all had a good old laugh.
If you are sneaky, you will be caught out, and if you are disrespectful of your readers, they will let you know.
Mrs Woog is a blogger who writes about her life and family at Woogsworld. This is a shorter version of the original post, which is available on the Woogsworld blog
I’m surprised you bit at this Mrs Woog – I felt like the piece was less about bloggers not deserving to be paid, and more about bloggers needing to disclose when they are being paid. It’s completely rich for a Murdoch journo to talk about ethics, but some of these bloggers mentioned are showered in freebies, designer clothes, travel, hotels, and never, ever disclose a single thing. These bloggers give the whole bunch a bad name and set a negative precedent, and when you always do the right thing (and you personally do; so many of us do) it’s not up to you to come to their defence.
User ID not verified.
News Ltd. Ethics. Hillarity.
User ID not verified.
Blogging is huge in the States and many are given exclusive access because they cater effectively to such niche audiences. We’ll catch up here soon enough, and the laws will follow.
User ID not verified.
Could this piece be just clever trolling?
It’s provocative tone will inspire blogs, blogs on sites with large followings and read by people likely to feel defensive about blogs.
User ID not verified.
Moran seems to have been riled by a PR asking about what questions he intended to ask – always a sign of a naive, inexperienced or control-freak PR or client.
” “Are you able to shoot through your general line of questioning for her (her manager has requested this) thanks!,” the email read.”
User ID not verified.
if you’re in PR and you don’t attempt to find out the questions your client/employer wll be asked, you’re not doing your job properly
there are more subtle ways to do so that to blurt out a request via email though
surprise questions will always be asked but if you just lead them by the nose into the unknown you might give the journo a great story but you won’t get your message across and you risk a poor outcome
User ID not verified.