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I've been following this story, as my co-founder and I are in the midst of an advertising-policy debate. I think the main issue was Popova not disclosing, even

I've been following this story, as my co-founder and I are in the midst of an advertising-policy debate. I think the main issue was Popova not disclosing, even in some tiny font somewhere, that there were affiliate links. She may have avoided that in order to hold the "ad-free" moral high ground. The FTC guidelines on this are an interesting read if you make endorsements, even affiliate links, on your site. I'll track it down. EDIT - Here it is: http://www.ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf http://www.ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides...

j_s 14y ago
As mentioned in one of the links below, item 10 in the Amazon.com Associates Program Operating Agreement requires disclosure: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/operating https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/oper... > You must, however, clearly state the following on your site: “[Insert your name] > is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate > advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising > fees by advertising and linking to [insert the applicable site name ( > amazon.com, amazonsupply.com, or myhabit.com)].”
mjn 14y ago
The active claim that there wasn't advertising is what bugs me in this case, more than the links not being labeled. I don't really mind if people include some affiliate links if they aren't particularly spammy (i.e. the content doesn't seem to be written solely as affiliate-link bait), but then if they do so, I wouldn't expect them to solicit donations while claiming to be ad-free.
cynwoody 14y ago
>I think the main issue was Popova not disclosing, even in some tiny font somewhere, that there were affiliate links. A visit to her site reveals that she has corrected that defect. Down at the bottom, we now see: Brain Pickings participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn commissions by linking to Amazon. In more human terms, this means that whenever you buy a book on Amazon from a link on here, I get a small percentage of its price. That helps support Brain Pickings by offsetting a fraction of what it takes to maintain the site, and is very much appreciated.
- jtheory 14y ago
  That's clever wording: That helps support Brain Pickings by offsetting a fraction of what it takes to maintain the site[...] It implies that only a small amount of the costs to maintain the site are paid for by affiliate link earnings, but technically something like 200/1 is also a "fraction".

j_s 14y ago

As mentioned in one of the links below, item 10 in the Amazon.com Associates Program Operating Agreement requires disclosure: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/operating https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/gp/associates/help/oper... > You must, however, clearly state the following on your site: “[Insert your name] > is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate > advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising > fees by advertising and linking to [insert the applicable site name ( > amazon.com, amazonsupply.com, or myhabit.com)].”

mjn 14y ago

The active claim that there wasn't advertising is what bugs me in this case, more than the links not being labeled. I don't really mind if people include some affiliate links if they aren't particularly spammy (i.e. the content doesn't seem to be written solely as affiliate-link bait), but then if they do so, I wouldn't expect them to solicit donations while claiming to be ad-free.

cynwoody 14y ago

>I think the main issue was Popova not disclosing, even in some tiny font somewhere, that there were affiliate links. A visit to her site reveals that she has corrected that defect. Down at the bottom, we now see: Brain Pickings participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn commissions by linking to Amazon. In more human terms, this means that whenever you buy a book on Amazon from a link on here, I get a small percentage of its price. That helps support Brain Pickings by offsetting a fraction of what it takes to maintain the site, and is very much appreciated.

jtheory 14y ago
That's clever wording: That helps support Brain Pickings by offsetting a fraction of what it takes to maintain the site[...] It implies that only a small amount of the costs to maintain the site are paid for by affiliate link earnings, but technically something like 200/1 is also a "fraction".