Armchair BEA: Ethics in Blogging

We're getting back into discussion mode in a big way today with the topic of "Ethics in Blogging." What guidelines must we follow as bloggers--attribution, disclosure, honesty? Have you had an experience with plagiarism (victim or perpetrator?), and how did you deal with it? Do you have recommendations to new bloggers about how to ensure that credit is given to whom/where it's due? 

 Share your thoughts on the ethical challenges of blogging--what we should be doing, and what fall apart when we don't do it.


Honesty and integrity are import in blogging just as it was in high school and college when writing English papers and anything else that needed to be typed and submitted. I had students try to cheat off of my paper in college and when I knew it, I would intentionally change my answer to the wrong one, then right before I turned in my paper, I would fix it. It was either that or trip the idiot as they walked out the door...but that is frowned upon in certain circles...but, I digress.

I believe that full credit is due to the author of the book. They spent hours, weeks, and months writing and editing their baby. To take that away from them is like a punch in the gut. I respect the work that these authors put into their stories. I sometimes may not like the story that I have read, but I respect the effort that was put in to the work and  I want everyone to know who wrote this book.

I'm still learning all about the massive blogging world, but I use the same standards as I did in school. There were consequences for plagiarism in school, there will be here too...but more severe with the threat of law suits and other wonderful set up legalities. So, if nothing else, always site the author and the book name together.

If you want to quote from the book on your blog, just follow the warning at the front of the book...every book has it. And I quote, "All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means--electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other--expect for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher."

Give credit where it is due. Site the author, if needed the publisher. If you quote from the book, make it known it is from the book and give the page number.Be respectful.