Daphne, if you don’t get any free books you are golden but the day you accept one you are caught in the FTC web. Even though I don’t take very many ARCS in the grand scheme of things so I’m not sure what I will do.

Sylvia, you are marvelous! The logic of the FTC is quite skewed. I understand what they are trying to do but they have done it in such a blanket way that it makes no sense.

Charlotte, I think you said it well when you ask whether it isn’t up to you to decide who to trust. This is kind of like the warnings on fast food coffee cups that say “content is hot.” There are companies that set up blogs and pretend to be real people, but it seems to me if all the “person” writes about is a particular product people wouldn’t be fooled. But then people still fall for the Nigerian email spam.

Grad, well you know the internet is a dangerous place and our government has to watch out for us and keep us safe. Gak. I think there is a point where personal responsibility has to come into play.

Nick, thank you for your suggestions. Ed Champion, who interviewed the FTC Chairman already has a page on his blog with his FTC statement. I might do something like that just to be safe even thought the FTC says they aren’t going to go after blogs but the companies. I’m small fry and probably don’t have to worry. But then I might not do anything differently. I haven’t decided yet.

Bikkuri, I think you are safe in Japan. The ruling isn’t just about books, but about any product that a blogger might receive free from a company.

Dorothy, you are right about the FTC not being able to enforce the guidelines because there are too many blogs. And if they do go after any blogs it will be the ones that gets thousand/millions of hits a day. I’ll continue to say when I got a book for free but I’m with you, if I paid for the book I shouldn’t have to say anything.

Litlove, oh I think we are all horrified and angry but at the same time we are disbelieving. I think people are waiting to see what happens and what the FTC is actually going to do before they start to worry about it too much. I also think in book blog world we might all be inclined to a little civil disobedience. Thoreau would be proud

Alayne, I’m glad you found it helpful and thanks!

Danielle, I think you are right, book blog readers are pretty savvy people so it seems silly that books are included too. I imagine there won’t be many book bloggers that do anything differently. We recognize the absurd when we see it!

Em, I think most book bloggers don’t accept books they don’t want, but sometimes you end up on lists then and books just show up. Most of the time those books are ones I have no interest in and I give them to friends and family.

Jack, I have no problems with saying I got a book for free, I always do anyway. What I have a problem with is that the rules are not applied fairly and that an ARC that is pretty much worthless is considered compensation. I also disagree that if purchase a book or borrow one from the library that I should have to say that the publisher sent me a free book once. If I received an ARC from say Random House five years ago and never another since, how much time would have to pass before I don’t have to say, oh yeah, I got a free book from them once?

If you’re referring to the fact that professional writers need not comply with FTC disclosure guidelines, while nonprofessional bloggers must, I certainly agree.

But if you’re referring to the fact that you must disclose that you’re reviewing a publisher’s free-gift book, why would it be so bad to disclose that? In fact, I would think that FTC guidelines would require you to disclose that you are occasionally given free books from a publisher, even if you are reviewing one of that publisher’s books that you’d purchased yourself.

Again, it does seem to me that these guidelines should apply to professional writers also.

Then your library benefits, the public benefits, they get their review when you have time, and you don’t have any tax liability.