Sponcon Disclosure Lessons from Teen Vogue’s Facebook Article Controversy

As the lines between journalism and advertising become increasingly blurred, media companies must be on high alert for potential pitfalls around the failure to properly disclose sponsored content. The proper characterization of content as commercial advertising, and the proper disclosure of such sponsored content, has drawn the scrutiny of both the Federal Trade Commission and the National Advertising Division in recent years. Teen Vogue’s equivocation on whether an uncritical article on Facebook’s role in the 2020 election amounted to sponsored content provides many lessons from which other media companies should learn. Earlier today, Teen Vogue published an article titled, “How Facebook Is Helping Ensure the Integrity of the 2020 Election.” The Twitterverse was set abuzz, because it seemed to be overly laudatory of Facebook and did not contain any critical questioning.  Commentators found the questions posed and the tone of the article surprising in light of Facebook’s role in the 2016 election and its recent public pronouncement regarding its approach in 2020. “Interesting pivot for Teen Vogue here to… Facebook PR?” tweeted Steven Perlberg, a freelance writer formerly with BuzzfFeed News and The Wall Street Journal, while Molly Jong-Fast of The Daily Beast described the article as “so sketchy.” Approximately an hour after it was posted, Teen Vogue added a prominent disclosure below the headline, stating, “Editor’s note: This is sponsored editorial content.” In a... Continue reading at 'Folio Magazine'

[ Folio Magazine | 2020-01-09 00:40:34 UTC ]
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Facebook, Google and Yahoo now say when the US government requests user content (update: Microsoft too)

Last week, the US government finally relented on letting technology companies publish more detail about national security requests; today, some bigger firms are taking advantage of the looser rules. Facebook, Google, LinkedIn and Yahoo have updated ... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2014-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #taking advantage


Facebook’s Looming Role as Media Kingpin

While Facebook is positioning Paper as a way for publishers to better reach -- and, hopefully, monetize -- mobile readers, Paper may make publishers too dependent on Facebook for traffic. The meteoric rise of sites like Elite Daily, Upworthy and Viral Nova shows how social-savvy publishers can... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #make publishers #meteoric rise #elite daily #substantial portion


Facebook: 10 years of social networking, in numbers

Ten years today, the social networking giant has notched up some interesting numbers along the way• How Facebook became the world's biggest social network1.23bn monthly usersBy the end of 2013, Facebook boasted 1.23bn monthly active users worldwide, adding 170m in just one year. According to... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #family guy #$1bn #mobile advertising


JK Rowling sues Daily Mail for libel over 'single mother' article

Harry Potter author seeks 'unspecified damages' for 'causing distress'The Daily Mail has taken down a story from its website about the author JK Rowling after she sued the paper for libel.Rowling says the online article, headlined "How JK Rowling's sob story about her past as a single mother has... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fairfax to pay Kim Williams $95,000 plus legal costs after inaccurate article

Story published in three papers wrongly claimed former News Corp chief stormed out of Sydney Opera House Trust meetingAmanda Meade Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #legal costs #inaccurate article #story published


B&N Ramps Up Teen and Tween Exclusives

On January 14, Barnes & Noble reissued a limited hardcover edition of John Green's debut novel, "Looking for Alaska," through its Exclusive Collector's Edition program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How Facebook's Mobile Ad Network Could (Finally) Upend A Backwards Industry

By understanding our tastes and habits, Facebook could steal billions of dollars in ads from traditional media and get Madison Avenue out of the stone age.Facebook has never been a company lacking in foolish ambition--witness Facebook Home, Beacon, Places, and other monumental undertakings. But... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #traditional media #madison avenue #third-party publishers


If Facebook is like a disease, I don't mind getting infected

Facebook has been in the news over the past few days after a report suggested that the social network is spreading in a similar way to a virus. Like all epidemics, the report suggests, the rate of infection will ultimately drop off, leading to the suggestion that by 2017 the social network will... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2014-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Tries a Mobile Ad Network

A Facebook spokesperson told Digiday that the program will not port Facebook-style ad units to other apps, however. Instead, it will simply use its data to target whatever formats those app publishers currently sell. The post Facebook Tries a Mobile Ad Network appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post facebook #app publishers


Facebook Testing Mobile Ad Network

Facebook is testing mobile ads that appear on apps other than its own, the company said. In a post today, Facebook says the test is for a mobile ad network it is creating. It marks an important step for the social network, showing its sponsored content outside its own properties is key to... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2014-01-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #post today #important step #sponsored content #working directly #small number #coming months


Facebook to Brands: Post More Images

Brands have spent the past couple of years complaining the content they publish is rarely actually seen by users that like their pages. That's party because Facebook wants those brands to pay for ads, but also because it doesn't want them alienating users with annoying updates asking people to... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-01-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James Frey and Google team up to fuse interactive teen novels with AR games

We knew Google's Niantic Labs was planning to use its Ingress tech to power other augmented reality games, but we didn't expect this. In an announcement today, Niantic announced it has teamed up with publisher HarperCollins to create a location-based ... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2014-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Is Testing A News Feed That Looks More Like A Newspaper

The change is subtle, but its message is clear: Facebook has entered the news business.It's no secret that Facebook is changing what appears in your feed dramatically. Whereas memes used to rule supreme--making basically anything shared by George Takei go viral--Facebook has reweighted its... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #facebook referrals #news business #george takei


ITV and BBC told to learn lessons from graphic Lee Rigby murder coverage

Ofcom clears broadcasters after complaints, but tells them to consider explicit warnings before airing 'challenging' footageRead the full Ofcom ruling on TV news coverge of Woolwich killing (P22)Ofcom has told broadcasters including ITV and the BBC to learn lessons after they aired graphic... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2014-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Duck Dynasty' star Phil Robertson's book sales spike following controversy

Phil Robertson was temporarily removed from 'Duck Dynasty' after he made controversial comments in an interview.  Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Controversy Doesn't Slow 'Happy' Sales

Sales of the Duck Dynasty star's book, Happy, Happy, Happy, saw an 86% increase between the weeks ended December 15 and December 22. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Even our grunts could be monetised by Facebook

Online hysteria about Facebook reading text that is deleted before it is posted might not be entirely unfoundedAs Mark Twain observed: "A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." And that was a long time before the web. Which brings us to a meme that was... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Boot up: Facebook self-censorship, Tufte in brief, developer intention, and more

Plus TV arbitrage, Canada investigates Google over antitrust, ARM server maker shuts, and moreA burst of 8 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology teamFacebook self-censorship: what happens to the posts you don't publish? >> SlateWe spend a lot of time thinking about what... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pinboardto suggest #@gdntech #microsoftapplegooglecharles arthurtheguardian


Obama's half-brother's memoir may prove controversial

Mark Obama Ndesandjo's book will reportedly detail abuse, beatings from the father he and the president shared. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Police officer awarded £60,000 damages over Times article

Report about Met detective sergeant Gary Flood claimed there were strong grounds to believe he was dishonest and corruptA police officer has been awarded £60,000 in damages in a high court judgment against the Times over an article which claimed that there were strong grounds to believe he was... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #public interest