Bloggers' Code of Ethics

In this day and age, many people are always looking for for ways to expand their online presence and while one of the most popular strategies is launching a blog, not everyone knows what is a blog and how to start one.

When blogs first emerged around 1994, people used them mainly to share their personal lives, including their experiences and interests. Now, blogs have become an essential online marketing strategy for businesses and one of the most profitable career choices for individuals.

The interface of blogs has changed significantly over time. Bloggers can now integrate various widgets and plugins into their platforms, such as a social media feed, a contact form, or an author profile.

However, once you submit any type of content online — a blog, recipe, video, photograph, or even a tweet — you automatically become a publisher and have the ethical responsibilities of a journalist.

Cyberjournalist.net created a Bloggers’ Code of Ethics that states, ". . . responsible bloggers should recognize that they are publishing words publicly, and therefore have certain ethical obligations to their readers, the people they write about, and society in general."

The Code includes the following mandates for bloggers:

1. Never plagiarize.
2. Identify and link to sources whenever feasible. The public is entitled to as much information as possible on sources’ reliability.
3. Distinguish between advocacy, commentary, and factual information. Even advocacy writing and commentary should not misrepresent fact or context.
4. Distinguish factual information and commentary from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two.
5. Disclose conflicts of interest, affiliations, activities, and personal agendas.
6. Deny favored treatment to advertisers and special interests and resist their pressure to influence content. When exceptions are made, disclose them fully to readers.

Many bloggers are interested in monetizing their blogs and entering into marketing relationships with food companies and other corporations to review products, write sponsored blog posts, or serve as media spokespeople. Disclosing these marketing relationships, such as payments or free prod- ucts, between a company and a blogger (an "endorser" or "advocate") is no longer simply an issue of ethics—there are legal implications. Revised endorsement guidelines from the Federal Trade Commission require bloggers who accept cash or in-kind payments to disclose these "material connections" with corporate sponsors or advertisers.

Transparency is required for blogs, podcasts, microblogs (eg, Twitter or X), social networks (eg, Facebook, LinkedIn), video sharing websites (eg, YouTube, Vimeo), and photo sharing websites (eg, Pinterest, Instagram). The rationale is that ". . . on a personal blog, a social networking page, or in similar media, the reader may not expect the reviewer to have a relationship with the company whose products are mentioned.