Web 2.0/ social media/new media promise potential benefits to many, many people for many, many reasons. With so much promise to make a better future through the use of interactive technology and so many positive example where new media live up to expectations, it is easy to forget that too often there is a dark side lurking just waiting for a chance to taint/corrupt/ruin what is effective and beneficial, or, at least ruin the credibility of a respected source or site.
An example of this is in the article, Yelp Controversy Exposes Dark Side of Web 2.0 in | InformationWeek SMB. The Register and the San Francisco Chronicle put the original story together. Apparently Yelp, a user review site, has misused its venue. Yelp denies that this is the case. (Who has their hands in the cookie jar?? Not I!!!)
The problem is that Yelp lined its coffers with money paid by reviewed retail establishments in the San Francisco Bay area to bury bad reviews. Cadiz Metz, a reporter for The Register, claims that five area businesses indicated to The Register that Yelp told them that their bad reviews would be placed toward the end of Yelps review page if the business bought advertising on the Yelp website.
In the Bay area, Yelp is pretty popular, so the location and type of criticism on their site could make or break a business. If the Geneva twins prepare diligently and thoughtfully to open a new fusion fast food- healthy food restaurant and do not pay Yelp, a bad review of opening day could be the death knoll for a quality enterprise. (Do overtones of "neighborhood protection echo here?) Could it be that a couple of customers who are angry or opposed to the new place submit reviews and encourage a few other to add comments to support their negative reviews -- on any review sited -- could kill a new project regardless of quality? Two problems?:The review company itself can manipulate reviews according to (under the table) monetary gains from the reviewees. Reviewers with ulterior motives can harness the power to squash a healthy enterprise through false bad reviews.
This is an interesting situation: a review company with power to elevate or destroy resting on its ability to manipulate enterprises into contributing funds to protect their existence. Always be aware of the unintended consequences. There may be an entity lurking in the shadows just waiting to yelp you out of business or anything else that matters.
Check out these links for the full story, and a look at the Yelp website:
I really like the idea of the site, however, this controversy that you are talking about may have the power to bring down Yelp. Which would probably be good at this point. Its kind of sad that such a site (working for the well-being of people wanting a good experience) becomes so corrupted. Hopefully some day we will reach a point where a website can be just that without all the extra money-making schemes...
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