I thought this was over and done but apparently commenters over at ENWorld are concerned that Sean Fannon is not disclosing that his use of affiliate links in his ENWorld posts. As for Sean, he's not changing a thing.
BTW, Sean's comment that is being responded to? Deleted. But I guess Sean can't delete the comments of others.
Wanna make a guess? Yep, Sean deleted his comment here too, which is captured in the response. A little snarky, perhaps? Am I the blogger clamoring for attention? No, just pointing out failures in the system. ENworld fixed their poorly marked "sponsored articles." Why not fix this?
Sean is being stubborn for NO legitimate reason. Add a simple "FYI - I make some cash back on sales made through my affiliate links. Thank You in advance."
I'm making an effort to be very open and disclose probably more than is necessary. Sean doesn't need to go that far.
ENworld gets about 8x the page views The Tavern gets on a daily basis (using websiteoutlook.com to get those estimates.) If I average on a yearly basis $1k from OBS referral sales, Sean must be doing significantly more. Why risk getting in trouble? Simply disclose that the links make one referral monies.
Yep. Gotta love that quote above: "He also noted that he doesn't consider himself a journalist and some other stuff that I unfortunately did not write down. I didn't bother to do that because "professional" news services don't actually stealth-modify their own posts, but instead issue corrections...."
This is one of those "learning moments" over at ENWorld. Well, learning moment or head in the sand. Time will tell.
If you go through all 6k+ posts here at The Tavern, you will see me, warts and all. I don't retcon and I don't stealth edit. I went to war with people I now consider friends and the "wars" are still there to be read by all. Own up to your mistakes and move forward. Digging a hole for yourself and then trying to cover it up by filling the hole back up is silly.
As an aside, if anyone ever wondered why I use so many screenshot and not simply a "copy / paste", this is why. Screenshots show what was, before the attempts to rewrite what happened. I can't misquote someone when I go with an actual screenshot of their words.
Disclosure: Sean Fannon was the Community Manager (or some similar title) at OBS when The Tavern was starting to get it's feet. His support was appreciated as he supplied The Tavern with occasional prizes to give away and seemed pleasant to interact with. I am predisposed to like Sean, but not his recent statements regarding news & advertising nor his undisclosed use of affiliate links. The FTC Guidelines were published recently, and while they may appear to be over cautious and to some heavy handed, it is what it is.
Edit - Here is what I believe was removed from the ENWorld posting:
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Tenkar's Tavern is supported by various affiliate programs, including Amazon, RPGNow,
and Humble Bundle as well as Patreon. Your patronage is appreciated and helps keep the
lights on and the taps flowing. Your Humble Bartender, Tenkar
Blogs of Inspiration & Erudition
-
-
grodog's Founders & Legends and GaryCon XVI Convention Reports - 14-25 March 2024 - Part 3 - GaryCon XVI – Thank YOUs and SwagContinued from *Part 1 – Arrival through Founders & Legends and Interregnum Tuesday* and from *Part 2 - GaryCon XVI – 20-2...1 hour ago
-
#AtoZChallenge2024: V is for Vampire - [image: Dracula by Edgar Alfred Holloway] Dracula by Edgar Alfred HollowayLong before I was ever known as the "witch guy" I was the "vampire guy." A lot of...2 hours ago
-
Stonehell: Dipping their toes in the sewer - Session 227 was played on 9/24/23 Morgana, Magic User (Rob) Blotto, Goblin Fighter (Lanse) Koltic, Cleric 7 (NPC) Aroon, Fighter 5 (NPC) Jameth, Fighter 5...3 hours ago
-
AD&D ability tests, streamlined - As I've mentioned in my Hyperborea review (check it pout!), I really liked how the game tries to streamline AD&D ability checks: This is a simpler versi...3 hours ago
-
V is for (Count) Vertigo - There have been a few versions of Count Vertigo. The primary version is Werner Vertigo (later comics name him Werner Zytle). He is a noble from the tiny Ea...4 hours ago
-
Gammarauders (1987) - From the web: Each player plays a large cybernetic creature known as a bioborg, which wanders about a radioactive science fiction landscape. Bioborgs are...4 hours ago
-
On preparing adventures for the Ghostbusters RPG - With my mind on a lot of things lately related to West End Games' classic RPG *Ghostbusters*, I was thinking of putting together a blog entry offering so...12 hours ago
-
d100 Wasteland Weirdos - Possibly some Charginspire leaked onto our new album. Sampler short https://youtube.com/shorts/Yj7jn40iomM?si=dflfJ10EdYYJqMYr My Gunderholfen solo play...1 day ago
-
Read Through & First Impressions of Cepheus Universal: Player's Book By Paul Elliott For The Cepheus Universal Rpg - So awhile back I picked up the massive Cepheus Universal Rpg rules which clock in at four hundred & forty three pages of the newest incarnation of the Zoz...1 day ago
-
Standoff at Sandfell Sea Fort - By MalrexThe Merciless MerchantsOSR/1e/2eLevels 4-7 Eerie lights? Strange noises? Ships are sailing blind into the rough shores of the Bay of Saurvorn. Why...1 day ago
-
A World in a Magazine - Four years ago, I wrote about my history with miniature games and getting back into them during the lockdown. Summer 1995 saw me seduced by the world of ...1 day ago
-
DFRPG Companion 3 on the way! - I got a shipping notice for a copy of DFRPG Companion 3! I'd kind of let this one slide out of my awareness. I'm excited to see it in person . . . it's al...1 day ago
-
Steampunk in GURPS-ish Style - Quite a few years ago, I printed a PDF of *GURPS Steampunk*, as I had some idea about running a late Victorian 1890s campaign involving an alien invasi...2 days ago
-
Miskatonic Monday #278: The Viscount Who Left Me - Between October 2003 and October 2013, Chaosium, Inc. published a series of books for *Call of Cthulhu* under the Miskatonic University Library Associati...2 days ago
-
Living Rooms, Beyond the Living Room, and The Open Form Broadside - Living rooms set to liven up your RPG adventures, and a broadside journal set to stimulate those little grey cells... Rob Kuntz's latest releases! *Livin...3 days ago
-
Return to the Known Lands – Session #43 – Beware of Strangers with Magic Swords, Pt. 2 - PCs: - Frakus (Dw FM 3) - Osan (Elf F/MU 4/2) - Omes (Half FM) - Arro (MU 3) NPCs: - Marnes (CL 4) - Burdar (Dw FM 1) -...4 days ago
-
New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin - [image: New Printable Scenery Campaign: Ramshackle & Ruin] I don't know how many of my peeps here are into 3d printing, but I'm always collecting the STL ...6 days ago
-
Play as Sculpture, Play as Prism - Watching my eldest child and friends engaging in imaginative play, I'm often struck by the fact that what seems to excite them is deciding who gets to be...6 days ago
-
OSR: Mirrors, Cubes, Rods, Staves, and the Deck of Motley Things - I've written another 10 pages of the Treasure Overhaul (title pending), a condensed magic item compendium for old-school games. Unlike the first two prev...1 week ago
-
A Review of 'A Tale of Bali' by Vicky Baum - really liked this book but the five stars I give it are based on my experience, and that is influenced strongly by my recent reading of 'The Theatre State'...1 week ago
-
Session #12 & Adventure Sites Compilation - Firstly, I wanted to let everybody know that Adventure Sites I by Coldlight Press is now available as a free download on DriveThruRPG. It includes my own...1 week ago
-
The Evolution of Gaming, or Why My Thoughts on Gaming have Changed Drastically Over Time - I have been thinking about this for quite a long time and though I am not an eloquent man, I thought I should put these random and chaotic thoughts down in...1 week ago
-
The Release of How to Make a Fantasy Sandbox and the Isle of Pyade - The Release With the successful conclusion and fulfillment of my Kickstarter, I am releasing How to Make a Fantasy Sandbox and The Isle of Pyade to the publ...1 week ago
-
Clerics of the Flanaess, Part 2 - Sorry it took so long to get to the next article in this series, but here we are! This continues the details of specialty clerics for the World of Greyhawk...2 weeks ago
-
On the Sector Turn - It's very simple. There are many important things cybertechtronically enhanced secret agents need to do: Buy illegal tanks with railguns. "Convince" the...2 weeks ago
-
Arsenic & Old Lace (a Review)... - The free-kriegsspiel revolution (or FKR; sometimes free-kriegsspiel roleplay) has been getting a lot of attention lately, which seems inevitable given re...3 weeks ago
-
The Light Dawns - THIS!!! Yes, a thousand times, this! Back in the day, I referred to this as “neo-classicalgaming,” which is to say, the sorts of games that came ou...3 weeks ago
-
Improvised Awful Lights Missions - Asking about The Awful Lights, a commenter asks: *I'd love to hear about how this is run - with the Handler determining mission location and objectives ...3 weeks ago
-
Jim Ward's Adventure in Gygax's Wonderland - Last weekend at GaryCon, many of us raised a glass to the memory of Jim Ward, who passed away just days before the convention. Ward was very helpful to m...3 weeks ago
-
It’s Tolkien Reading Day - I recently started rereading *The Silmarillion*. I had last read it over two decades ago. I liked it then but I’m really enjoying it this time! Despite b...4 weeks ago
-
Osr anchorites? - It's been a long time since I listened to any osr podcasts. Anchor was a lot of fun. I'm not sure if the community is still going? I deleted the app ...5 weeks ago
-
Chaos War Dogs - Welcome back to the Vault! My gaming partner and I had a fun day at the Meme Team doubles last weekend, placing mid-table results wise. My eye is now lo...5 weeks ago
-
ShadowDark Magic Items - The next campaign I run will use the ShadowDark RPG. I'm not sure when that'll be (I'm hoping a little later this year), but ShadowDark is my choice. I'v...1 month ago
-
Xandering, Jaquaysing, or Arneson-ing the Dungeon? - Yet another gamer firestorm arose shortly after the passing of Janelle Jaquays when it was noted that Justin Alexander had changed a rather well known p...2 months ago
-
GLOG Class: Bioweapon - I got this idea from mad gods on bear blog. Crab Evo from Kagaku Sentai Dynaman A thousand soldiers were slain. Too many to be tragic--this is just a fact...2 months ago
-
The Economy Engine, v0.2 - I made a thing. For D&D 3rd edition, so it might not be that interesting to a lot of people. But I made it and I think it’s cool. The 3rd edition Dungeon M...2 months ago
-
*'s in SpaaaaaAaaaace - A lot of SF (including a certain 2D6 RPG grandaddy) deal with ancient aliens taking humans from Earth and dropping them, fleas and all, on one or more w...2 months ago
-
[MODULE] The Webs of Past and Present & Cloister of the Frog-God (NOW AVAILABLE!) - Can you have enough frog-themed modules? I am pleased to announce the publication of two adventure modules, *The Webs of Past and Present *and *Cloister of...2 months ago
-
What Else Have I Got in Me? - Brechewold's been done for a little while. Still incredibly pumped to have this labor of love out in the company of LotFP's marvelously creative body of ...3 months ago
-
Housekeeping 2024 - Coactus Illustration © Heather Gwinn. A gift she gave me in 2013 for an edition of Miscreated Creatures which I hope exists someday. Coloring by me. I am a...3 months ago
-
Last move - to self-hosting! - As my vote regarding Substack in the “marketplace of ideas”, I’m moving to self-hosting. I’m now at (and hopefully staying for a long time at) Blog: ht...3 months ago
-
Sex-Crazed Falling Stars, Free Weather Magic, and Adventures: News of the Hill Cantons - *Grandma Gaya, the Rav-Witch of High Kezmarok*, seeks the stout of limb and humble of mind in the *obtaining of fallen stars* from an upcoming prophesied ...3 months ago
-
Time Rolls On - Today is December 31, 2023, in the mid-afternoon. In less than ten hours it will be 2024. 2023 2023 was a good year. But all years are good years. Both goo...3 months ago
-
Play Report: Skull Mountain - At the end of the last Skull Mountain session the PCs had retreated to safety at Owen's redoubt, met with visiting elves, and recovered from injuries ...5 months ago
-
-
Moving On... - So, my D&D 5e experiment has blown up the lab in a puff of green smoke leaving my face blackened like Wile E. Coyote after a failed roadrunner Acme trap...10 months ago
-
How to Keep Megadungeons Fresh - People often consider megadungeons boring. Not because the play style is boring, but because they are in the same locale for a majority of the campaign. If...11 months ago
-
ODIOUS UPLANDS and COMPLETELY UNFATHOMABLE DCC AT LAST - NOW AVAILABLE in PDF and Print on Demand:ODIOUS UPLANDS and COMPLETELY UNFATHOMABLE (DCC)CLICK HERE TO BUY NOW! SO YOU SURVIVED OPERATION UNFATHOMABLE? Od...1 year ago
-
The Blade Itself - I just finished listening to the audiobook of The Blade Itself, volume one in Joe Abercrombie’s The First Law trilogy. This was my first exposure to his wo...1 year ago
-
Master Treasure Seeker: A Dungeon23 MegaDungeon - Introduction - Sean McCoy, author of Mothership, posted an article on his substack titled Dungeon23 and it's taken the indie RPG scene by storm. So, I'm throwing my hat...1 year ago
-
Genteel Magistrate at FenCon XVIII - Victorious author Mike Stewart will be a guest at FenCon XVIII this weekend at the Sheraton DFW Airport hotel, 4440 W. John Carpenter Freeway, Irving, TX, ...1 year ago
-
Osamu Tezuka (1928 - 1989) - [image: Osamu Tezuka - Shonen Magazine Cover, 1970]Shonen Magazine Cover, 1970 [image: Osamu Tezuka - Shonen Magazine Cover Illustration 1970]Shonen Maga...1 year ago
-
Helvéczia: Journal de Campagne, 3 - We resumed play this past week, joining the company still within the farmstead where those that remain of the seven knaves are restrained or incapacitate...1 year ago
-
This is an Important Game Mechanic - *"That's the GM's Regional Map from my AOWG. And it's a damned good regional map. It's not a good map for a Simple Homebrew Campaign. It does some s$&...1 year ago
-
Clean Your Room - Looking back at my little blog here. That last post… wow, I was having fun playing WOW Classic! That was August of 1999 and I was having a blast… it was ...2 years ago
-
-
My RPG Zine Trilogy is on Kickstarter! - I can't believe I didn't post about it here! The Dead are Coming, Screams Amongst the Stars and Running Out of Time are on *Kickstarter right now!* Thes...3 years ago
-
Maximum HP 004, one week to go - Just one week to go for Maximum HP issue #004, the undead. We are pushing through stretch goals and wracking up contributions for the best issue yet. We...3 years ago
-
Steve Jackson Interview - James Maliszewski recently did an interview with Steve Jackson over on his Grognardia blog. Steve chats about the beginnings of The Fantasy Trip and upcomi...3 years ago
-
The Hero’s Journey 2nd Edition, Campbellian roleplaying at its best! - (this review done using the reviewers own purchased copy) I have been a James Michael Spahn fan since he wrote his Swords & Wizardry Companion. His writing...3 years ago
-
Undermountain Map Origins - As documented on the Ruins of Undermountain sales page, "TSR didn't actually use Ed Greenwood's original maps," at least not in their entirety. This post d...3 years ago
-
WB:FMAG Total Print Sales - Hello Folks, The last time I did a quick sales report was in September 2018. I pulled reports from Amazon, Lulu and DrivethruRPG from October to current fo...4 years ago
-
The Minotaur for Old-School Essentials - *Minotaur* *Requirements:* Minimum STR 9, Minimum CON 9 *Prime Requisite:* STR and CON *Hit Dice:* 1d10 *Maximum Level:* 8 *Armor:* Leather, including shield...4 years ago
-
WIZARDS OF POHJOLA - Init +0 Melee Atk • sword or dagger +1 (1d5 or 1d3) Ranged Atk • hot iron sparks +3 (1d4+2 to two targets within 20' but not closer than 5') AC 14 HD 12d...4 years ago
-
The Withered Crag custom print version for sale again - Just re-enabled the direct sales button for the custom print (classic style detached cover) version of F4 The Withered Crag, and also for F3 Many Gates of...4 years ago
-
Dungeons & Dragonmead Fall Schedule - *As you know, I run public classic Dungeons & Dragons games at **The Loaded Die**/Metro Detroit Game Night's Board Game Nigh at **Dragonmead**, in Warren...4 years ago
-
-
D&D Sling Damage vs. Large Targets - In many early editions of D&D, weapons were assigned two damage values: one for small/medium targets (i.e. man-sized) and one for large targets (giants and...4 years ago
-
James A. Smith, Jr. Memorial Video - A beloved father, devoted friend, and D&D Dungeon Master extraordinaire. We miss you! To view video, click here Memorial Video Note - The original video...5 years ago
-
Let's Talk About Pacing! - The idea, I think, is that the RPG is ultimately about the long game. Even rolling back to the early days of Basic & Expert, the goal of the player was...5 years ago
-
Profane and Profound Prep Part 2 - This is part 2 of my work to edit my magic items for a DMsGuild release, along with adding cursed items along the way. Here is part 1. Bone of a Saint 8000...5 years ago
-
SHORT BREAK. - I'm going to take a break for a week or so and will start up again in the New Year. Thanks for reading and we'll start with Level 6 when I get back.5 years ago
-
Iain Lovecraft, 3D Sculptor - Nope, it's got nothing to do with Cthulhu. I just did a video conversation with Iain Lovecraft, who designs 3D miniatures and terrain. If you're not doi...5 years ago
-
New website! - Slowly but surely, all the content here will make its way — in updated form! — to my new website: timbannock.com. For fairly obvious reasons, that site wil...5 years ago
-
Please Update Your Link! - If you're seeing this, it means your link to the Greyhawk Grognard blog is out of date. Please update your link to www.greyhawkgrognard.com (RSS feed is h...5 years ago
-
Mord Mar - Session 6 - We weren't able to play Mord Mar last week, due to a family funeral. This week we played on Monday for the first time, due to kids returning to school and ...5 years ago
-
A Small, Quiet Plea - There has been a great deal of discussing political agendas, social grievances, and personal attacks within the little corner of gaming that is my hobby....5 years ago
-
Don’t Sleep It’s Broken - Expanding/editing my comments from What Makes Something Broken G+ thread: “Broken”, for me, is anything that makes normal character choices, tactics, or ro...6 years ago
-
Swords & Wizardry Light-Themed Birthday Party - Last month, my wife and I helped our oldest to celebrate his birthday in style. Ever since 2013, we have hosted a themed birthday party for our now-15-ye...6 years ago
FTC? That is the first time I've seen the FTC come up in talking about referral links in bulletin board posts.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking#affiliate
DeleteI love the casual jab at Gamergate, given that the concern about disclosure policies being enforced is pretty much the same.
ReplyDeleteIt's a virtue signaling. It's tribalism.
DeleteEditing and deleting comments and posts after the fact, especially those he finds personally damning? Who does he think he is, Ken "Whit" Whitman?
ReplyDeleteSTOP CLAMORING FOR ATTENTION YOU TROUBLE MAKER!!!
ReplyDeleteIt looks like Sean added a comment to the end of the referenced ENworld thread explaining his action and link back to the original post.
ReplyDeletehttp://seanspickoftheday.com/2016/09/08/nocturne-13th-age-seans-pick-090816/
So should those websites that have an affiliate link program be more energetic in making sure their affiliates follow this new ruling?
ReplyDeleteI have affiliate links, and only learned of this change reading here.
I just checked and the Affiliate pages for RPGNow and DriveThruRPG and they don't mention the link shared above, or any other federal rules.
Is it time for a piece about the Affiliate Programs at various online retailers and how they help their affiliates stay on the right side of the federal rules?
Now I need to consider how to best implement that on my blog....
it might be time for a piece. i'll see what i can do
DeleteIt's all the bloggers/news posters/whatever - it's not just Sean, so I don't think it's fair to only focus on him. They apparently all have their own affiliate links, judging by a quick review of various posts, and I don't think any of them are disclosing any better.
ReplyDeletePart of this is probably DTRPG's fault, because I found nothing about disclosure in their affiliate guidelines, either. Really, if you want to start a change, start from there.
Morrus has mentioned adhering to UK law in regards to affiliate links. I'd say he knows that a good deal more than we do. But if the people posting affiliate links reside in the US, I'd say it's not so clear-cut as that.
If you are a US resident, even if posting on a forum, you need to disclose.
DeleteAnd it's fair to focus on Sean, as ENWorld does some of the, if not the largest amount of traffic in our hobby and he's said he is not going to add a disclosure.
Sean is likely one of the largest income generating affiliates for OBS.
Oh for sure, he needs to disclose.
DeleteThis isn't, "stop picking on Sean", this is "wow, this is far-reaching."
And good point, re: his volume.
I've met Sean (and his family) and he seems like a generally nice guy. I don't necessarily begrudge him for not disclosing affiliate links, as it seems fairly wideapread in the industry. I don't agree with him that he's have to put a bunch of leal mumbo jumbo in each post, as a simple disclosure in his signature line should do the trick.
ReplyDeleteI have more of an issue when you couple the fact that he pimps his own products, or those of his affiliated partners under the guise of a "Pick of the Week". He points towards a Shaintar product (for example), gets rewarded from affiliate links AND from sales generated by those links. It all comes accross as very self-serving.
Talk about self-serving--Fannon crowdfunded an interstate move to better "flourish and create" as an artist.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.gofundme.com/BigDenverAdventure
I think his affiliate-linking is small potatoes after that.
Nothing scummy or sleazy about a gofundme. It's obvious, honest, and up-front. You know what you're doing when you give him money.
DeleteI don't have any problems with it either. It's not like people didn't understand what they were donating money for. It's a bit bizarre, but it ended up working out for him.
DeleteIt is not the amount of money that matters it is the transparence of the money being made that is the issue. After all the FTC regulations exist for this reason.
ReplyDeleteIf Sean were picking Stock exchange picks sending people to companies he had a vested interested in via an affiliate link.
Maybe I missed it before, but the header of his web page now says he uses affiliate links to generate revenue. It seems then, that this covers every page.
ReplyDeleteIf someone (Erik?) write up something about what is needed and/or how to do this I wonder if this is enough. It seems like it should to me as it is on every page.
I added it when the FTC guidelines came to my attention.
DeleteI'm small potatoes and I have no plans to run afoul of the FTC even if I personally think the guidelines as posted are a bit excessive.
I also go out of my way to disclose my relationship to those involved in the products I review or mention, as such can be seen as an endorsement.
IANAL, but I'll see what I can put together. The thing is, the FTC Guidelines aren't written in legalese, they are written in plain English with examples. Neither Sean (nor anyone else) needs a bunch of legal mumbo jumbo embedded in their posts.
I don't understand why having some copy at the end of his articles just explaining that he receives some benefit hurts.
ReplyDelete