FAQ's Simply FTC Endorsement Guides-- Interns Help

Renegade's Intern did her homework on how the FTC Endorsement "Guides" can apply to ordinary bloggers. Although the Guides provide 35 examples demostrating how the Guides apply to offline and online situations, the Guides do not much guidance as to the FTC's enforcement priorities. Recently the FTC issued a set of "Frequently Asked Questions ("FAQs") for the Guides that pretty clearly state the FTC's concern, namely, whether the audience understands the reviewer’s (whether bloggers, celebritys or advertisers) relationship to the company whose products are being reviewed. Also, advertisers like Ann Taylor that "hire" bloggers are more likely to be the target of an investigation than the blogger herself. Claims that are decptive may also be regulated, see FTC guidance on deceptive ad claims, here.