Read on Twitter
I can't tell if this is a case of twitter telephone gone wrong, but i feel like there's a pretty big gap between "I can't pay book bloggers for a review" and "I don't think book bloggers should be able to monetize at all"
part of my confusion is that at one point, i saw people bring up professional book reviewers as examples of people who get paid to review books..
but they get paid by the publication they're writing for and (afaik) shouldn't be getting paid by the author/publisher
but they get paid by the publication they're writing for and (afaik) shouldn't be getting paid by the author/publisher
And if we are comparing ourselves to professionals...the notion that you'll be biased if you get paid by the people you're writing about is a real thing in media/journalism, and the ways these conflicts of interest can manifest are way more subtle
i've seen it argued over in terms of who narrates podcast ads, who sponsors conferences, who gets to serve on leadership teams of professional societies....
"you can't get paid to write about a thing by the thing you're writing about" is like the most straightforward one
"you can't get paid to write about a thing by the thing you're writing about" is like the most straightforward one
which doesn't mean that media outlets always behave well. fashion/beauty magazines are probably the most notorious example of advertising shaping content, and part of the appeal of beauty gurus (to me anyway) is that we all know more about things like sponsored trips
obviously we're probably all starting booktube/book blogging as a hobby, but that doesn't mean that if we can get paid, we shouldn't
no one is forcing us to do this, but the community and every "i read this book b/c of you" is testament to the value of our time and skills
no one is forcing us to do this, but the community and every "i read this book b/c of you" is testament to the value of our time and skills
but how you get paid is still important because it signals things to your audience. on the more obvious end, it's why people are put off by laxative tea sponsorships...it's both the bad health "advice" and the knowledge that you'll use your platform too spread that
but in general, i think sponsorships are great! it's why i don't complain when i watch 50 channels with the same advertising break. but as an audience and creator, i would find sponsored *book reviews* weird for all the conflict-of-interest-y stuff above.
there are probably creators who i would trust enough to still watch. but the more i see this general "money doesn't bias us!" argument get floated around, the more i'm concerned that we're not actually thinking about the ways that money...does bias us?
at the very least, it's going to shape what you're talking about.
and yes, it may affect your opinions. and that's fine! there's literally nothing wrong with that as long as you're aware of it and thinking about how you want that to shape your content
and yes, it may affect your opinions. and that's fine! there's literally nothing wrong with that as long as you're aware of it and thinking about how you want that to shape your content
i don't mean any of this as a condemnation, i just think we need to be more thoughtful about the many different forms that "bias" takes on and how that shapes our community as it grows
idk this thread got long, and i didn't even realize i had this many opinions about what feels like a few different debates that have gotten lumped into one
but yeah, very pro creators getting paid, but like...we need to be thoughtful about it
but yeah, very pro creators getting paid, but like...we need to be thoughtful about it
