Duty to disclose

[Ian]

I’ve reviewed the Backpackinglight.com policies, terms and conditions of use and could not find any rules regarding duty to disclose sponsorship or commercial interests.  Perhaps I overlooked it and if so, my apologies.

Half to three-quarters down, there is a link to Forum Usage Guidelines.  The link is broken or misdirected to “Page Not Found.”

Since this is a gear centric website and there are numerous sponsors and manufacturers who contribute within the forums, I think it would be wise to post clear guidance on what the expectations are for disclosing sponsorship, ownership, scholarship, battleship, or any other ship.

Donkey shorts.

 

[Chad B]

Well whatever the rules, I still say no man can eat 50 eggs in one hour.  Or drink a whole liter of water at the trailhead . . . no man.

[Ian]

If my boy says he can eat 50 eggs, he can eat 50 eggs.

[John Vance]

Only one liter!  If you have had a colonoscopy you’d know you can drink one liter in 15 mins followed by a second over the next 45 – and that’s with a whole bottle of fiber thrown in.  You will be carrying the weight so your skin out weight goes up, but only for a while, then significant weight reduction but you won’t feel much like hiking.

[Roger Caffin]

Thank you. I have notified Ryan of the broken link.

But I am sure that somewhere we USED to have a disclosure requirement. Have to find it.

Cheers

 

[Ian]

Hi Roger,

I seem to remember there being a disclosure statement too but danged if I can find it.  I tried searching for it through Google as that will sometimes yield better results than the internal search function, but nada.

[BlackHatGuy]

The only current disclosure statement is: Commercial Postings: Any postings regarding commercial deals or product announcements should be posted in the Gear Deals forum only, and must include a full disclosure of any vested interest the poster may have in the product.

Edit to add: you can find it under forum quick links/posting guidelines

[Nick Gatel]

For the record, here is my disclosure:

I buy ALL my gear at full retail unless there is a discount offered to all customers.

I am not a backpacking, camping, or gear expert.

I do not accept any gear for free, or purchase anything with the condition that a review is forthcoming from me.

I hate the concept of Gear Ambassador. If you don’t know what that means, then there is no need for you to Google it. If you know what it is, then no explanation needed. I am not a Gear Ambassador for any company.

I have no gear company “sponsoring” me. No gear company has ever offered to sponsor me. I bet that few, if any, gear companies even know who I am, other than maybe a couple very small concerns.

I do not do business with any company that offers any sort of perk or chance of a reward if you “Like” them on Facebook. Of course I can only confirm if this is happening if they post it on their Website because I do not read anything on Facebook.

I am an old curmudgeon, opinionated and resistant to change. I dislike most people. Dogs, mosquitoes, and children usually dislike me back.

There is no benefit to me posting anything on my Website. There is no advertising, no comments from readers can be posted, and there is no email contact form. Basically I don’t care what anybody thinks about what I write.

What works for me probably won’t work for you.

If you buy something because I like it or use it, you probably made a poor purchase decision.

 

[BlackHatGuy]

“I dislike most people.”

That’s what I like about you Nick. :-)

[Nick Gatel]

Doug,

You know you’re on my Like list.

 

[Franco Darioli]

I dislike most people. Dogs, mosquitoes, and children usually dislike me back.
Fair enough , but what about this little bundle of joy ?

[Nick Gatel]

Never had a cat, so I am neutral. Actually I had kids because they live longer than dogs and cats.

 

[Justin Baker]

“Basically I don’t care what anybody thinks about what I write.”

Then what is your motivation for writing things in the first place?

[Roger Caffin]

Never had a cat, so I am neutral. Actually I had kids because they live longer than dogs and cats.

Which may be a good reason for cats?   :-)
———————-

More seriously, yes, BPL has a strict requirement for full disclosure of any vested interests which could conceivably affect any review you write. This is NOT saying that your review might be in any way biased. But squeaky clean is the message.

Where are the Rules? Sigh, they got lost in the website upgrade. But Ryan is working on getting them back ASAP. In the meantime, the above applies. If in ANY doubt, contact me.

Cheers
[email protected]

 

[Ian]

Thanks for the get-back Roger.

[Ian]

Thanks to Doug for directions to the link.

http://support.backpackinglight.com/article/48-are-forums-moderated-what-are-your-guidelines

Seems like there was more guidance than this.

Commercial Postings: Any postings regarding commercial deals or product announcements should be posted in the Gear Deals forum only, and must include a full disclosure of any vested interest the poster may have in the product.

[Ken Thompson]

Everyone lies. Form your own opinions.

[Paul Magnanti]

Everyone lies. Form your own opinions.

 

Is that a lie? ;)

 

 

[Ken Thompson]

No word of a lie Mags…

[Ken Thompson]

I use this as a disclosure at times,

[Roger Caffin]

Seems like there was more guidance than this.

Well, the Gear Deals statement should be enough for Gear Deals, even though it is very short. In fact, being that short it is rather hard to weasel past it.

But we do have a general disclosure requirement as well – always have as far as I can remember. But maybe we need to have it stated explicitely somewhere? If so, where?

Comments please.

Cheers
Roger

[Ian]

Roger,

i agree with what Doug said in the other thread. I’m think adding it to the forum posting guidelines and then making the link to it on the forums page a bit more conspicuous would do the trick.

[Ian]

If The Trail Show hasn’t trademarked “no word of a lie,” they should.  I swear I hear “blood mud guts… Something something something fiesta…. It’s a fraud…” And felt compelled to burn blue jeans with a propane torch As I read those words.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Ian

Yeah, ON the Forum page is what i was thinking of.

Is this possible w this Forum SW? I have yet to find out.

Cheers

 

[Paul Magnanti]

No word of a lie, I left our motley crew. It was fun, but time to move on.

Luckily we never had any gear sponsorships to disclose.  Beer sponsorships on the other hand…

[Author]

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