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And if they did, what’s wrong with it? People are not allowed to make money? As long as they don’t prioritize based on affiliation I don’t see a problem.

filt 7y ago
I guess that what people are worried about is the fact that there is no way to really know if the prioritization that was made was based on the affiliation or not.
- mrhappyunhappy 7y ago
  Sure, I can see that, but this is true of just about anything that includes any sort of paid promotion or linking. Wirecutter makes money off amazon but people trust them to be honest? I’m not saying we shouldn’t, quite the opposite. It wasn’t that long ago I was of the opposite opinion if you just check my comment history. Recently I’ve decided to put a little more faith into human beings and give them the benefit of the doubt. Yes money is a motivator but I think there can be a balance between earning on affiliate links and presenting unbiased recommendations.
michaelt 7y ago
what’s wrong with it? A belief that, when the subject of the report is handing over cash and free samples to the reporter, "unbiased" reporting won't actually be unbiased. You see this in loads of situations, even those with ethics codes and suchlike. From Youtubers and Instagram influencers all the way to professional games journalists and national newspapers' lifestyle magazines.
- mrhappyunhappy 7y ago
  You speak as if everyone abides by some ethics standards where people cannot make honest assessments and recommendations without being influenced by money. I just don’t get it, people here seem to have a hard on for wirecutter but mention affiliate marketing and we are all scumbags for even considering it. I’m generalizing too, but so are you.
  - michaelt 7y ago
    people here seem to have a hard on for wirecutter Not me, I've seen https://www.xdesk.com/wirecutter-standing-desk-review-pay-to-play-model https://www.xdesk.com/wirecutter-standing-desk-review-pay-to... † - precisely the sort of observations that make people suspicious of shill reviewers. † which admittedly wirecutter disagree with https://thewirecutter.com/our-response-to-nextdesk/ https://thewirecutter.com/our-response-to-nextdesk/

filt 7y ago

I guess that what people are worried about is the fact that there is no way to really know if the prioritization that was made was based on the affiliation or not.

mrhappyunhappy 7y ago
Sure, I can see that, but this is true of just about anything that includes any sort of paid promotion or linking. Wirecutter makes money off amazon but people trust them to be honest? I’m not saying we shouldn’t, quite the opposite. It wasn’t that long ago I was of the opposite opinion if you just check my comment history. Recently I’ve decided to put a little more faith into human beings and give them the benefit of the doubt. Yes money is a motivator but I think there can be a balance between earning on affiliate links and presenting unbiased recommendations.

michaelt 7y ago

what’s wrong with it? A belief that, when the subject of the report is handing over cash and free samples to the reporter, "unbiased" reporting won't actually be unbiased. You see this in loads of situations, even those with ethics codes and suchlike. From Youtubers and Instagram influencers all the way to professional games journalists and national newspapers' lifestyle magazines.

mrhappyunhappy 7y ago
You speak as if everyone abides by some ethics standards where people cannot make honest assessments and recommendations without being influenced by money. I just don’t get it, people here seem to have a hard on for wirecutter but mention affiliate marketing and we are all scumbags for even considering it. I’m generalizing too, but so are you.
- michaelt 7y ago
  people here seem to have a hard on for wirecutter Not me, I've seen https://www.xdesk.com/wirecutter-standing-desk-review-pay-to-play-model https://www.xdesk.com/wirecutter-standing-desk-review-pay-to... † - precisely the sort of observations that make people suspicious of shill reviewers. † which admittedly wirecutter disagree with https://thewirecutter.com/our-response-to-nextdesk/ https://thewirecutter.com/our-response-to-nextdesk/