FTC to Crack Down on Paid Celebrity Posts That Aren’t Clear Ads
Good, and I hope it has lasting effects on the approach to advertising in the modern era. I&#x27;m sure the system will be imperfect, but the push-pull of the &quot;Ad Biz&quot; is something I&#x27;ve learned first hand. You know, the fine print.<p><i>GI JOE SKY STRIKER JET DOES NOT ACTUALLY FLY</i><p>Personally I like to know when somebody is acting as a paid shill. In that vein I feel my endorsements - at this time uncompensated in any fashion (DistroKid, Ernie Ball strings, Agile Guitars) - have value. I speak from personal authority, not because somebody cut me a check or sent freebies.<p>I&#x27;m not a big spender, so I try to treat my public endorsements as genuinely worth something because if I&#x27;m willing to pay for it myself, and I believe in the product, then that&#x27;s what the point of talking about things is in word-of-mouth business! If I get an opportunity to &quot;test&quot; something without paying, I&#x27;m going to disclose that right away. It just feels...ethical...Every once and a while I watch the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode &quot;Boost Mobile&quot; and soak in the delicious mockery of celebrity endorsements. YMMV.<p>Or, for any who think the FTC is maybe over-stepping a bit, let&#x27;s consider the other avenue that gets talked about as a &quot;First Amendment&quot; adjacent issue: Astroturfing.