‘Fake News’ Crackdown: Avoid Deceptive Claims

Thinking about advertising your new product via a fake news site like in the acai berry scheme? If you do, you may run afoul of the FTC. The FTC has recently started to crack down on acai berry schemes . The fake news sites look to be from legitimate news sources like NBC, CNN, Fox or USA Today , but are actually not affiliated with the outlets at all. The ads in question look to be real news stories, but are actually simply clever advertisements disguised as news stories designed to catch customers. How can your business avoid running into trouble? The simple answer is to make sure that your advertisements don’t end up being as deceptive as the acai berry ads. First and foremost, steer clear form making statements that go above and beyond puffing up your product. Don’t hawk your goods like you are a snake oil salesman by promising miracles that you cannot back up – advertise your products legitimately. Generating trust and buzz with consumers based on results that you can back up can be helpful. And, try not to make your advertisements look to be something that they are not. The acai berry flat belly ads looked like they were investigative journalism pieces, when they were actually just ads designed to feed consumers into purchasing acai berry products from third parties. Getting kickbacks from websites for them touting your goods may also make you run into some legal troubles. A FTC ruling in 2009 has made it so that websites who get money or have financial ties and connections with the products should have disclaimers and tell buyers of the connection. Of course, most businesses won’t advertise via something that looks like a fake news site like in the acai berry scheme. But, in the slippery world of online advertising, it’s important to recognize and be aware of some of the limitations that have been placed on online advertising. Related Resources: Ubiquitous ‘tiny belly’ online ad part of scheme, government says (Washington Post) New FTC Online Advertising Rules Coming (FindLaw’s Free Enterprise) Bloggers and Paid Reviews: New FTC Guide to Endorsements (FindLaw’s Common Law) Fair Advertising Guide for Small Businesses (FindLaw’s Free Enterprise)

See more here:
‘Fake News’ Crackdown: Avoid Deceptive Claims

ATTORNEY ADVERTISEMENT:  This communication or portions thereof may be considered "advertising" as defined by Section 6157(c) of the California Business and Professions Code or within the jurisdiction in which you are viewing this.  Nothing in the discussion above is intended to be a representation or guarantee about the outcome of any legal proceeding in which you may be involved.  By providing the information above in this format, Michel & Associates is not soliciting you to hire it to handle a specific legal matter you may currently have or be anticipating commencing in the future.  Notwithstanding the discussion above, you should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content on this site without seeking appropriate legal advice regarding your particular circumstances from an attorney licensed to practice law.  This communication is informational only and does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and Michel & Associates.  Michel & Associates's attorneys are licensed to practice in California, Texas, and the District of Columbia.