Fun With Carbs

Photo credit: Flickr user striatic

As a food journalist, stories like this are hard for me to stomach. (No terrible pun intended.) The Internet is raging over news that a Singaporean food blogger reportedly demanded a free restaurant meal, valued at $435, for him and three friends. Other bloggers decried Brad Lau as an “arrogant freeloader” and said his actions had shamed the entire blogging community.

It is, however, important to read both sides of the story. Lau published his account of the dustup on his site, claiming that he had been invited by the restaurant’s PR manager for a brunch tasting. He even included documentation of his correspondence with this representative. In the email exchange, the PR manager wrote that the restaurant would be “honored” to host him.

While Lau admits to arrogant behavior on his end (specifically, tossing a credit card in anger)  it sounds like a major communication breakdown.  If the restaurant had truly intended to “host” Lau, it was fair of him to assume that the meal would be on the house. Whatever happened in Singapore, it still brings up the highly-debated topic of blogger freebies.

As restaurants, food product companies and PR firms realize bloggers’ potential to reach new customers through their site readership, they’re quick to send samples and plan tastings, receptions and dinners in hopes of getting good reviews.

There inlies the problem. If you’ve received something for free, whether it’s wine, cooking equipment or a complimentary meal, can you really write objectively about it? The consensus on this is generally, “No,” with the mentality that the restaurant or company may expect a favorable review. After all, they’ve treated you. This is where transparency tends to get lost.

In a way, it’s easier to be affiliated with a mainstream media source. As a freelance blogger and writer for the Courant, I get invites to dinners and offers for free food on a near-daily basis. It’s simple to decline politely and reference your newspaper’s strict policy, though it can be very uncomfortable to insist on paying a bill if a restaurant wants to treat you. (I’ve found that the line “I will lose my job if you don’t let me pay” is 100% effective.)

That’s harder for a non-journalist to do, especially when you can essentially write your own rules as a blogger. But I’ve been out of j-school for five years and I still remember, clear as day, one of my professors telling us never to take  more than “a bottle of water” from a source. It’s an issue of integrity. If you pay your own way, you don’t owe anyone anything. This can get expensive – as a freelancer, the majority of my food costs are out of pocket. But I’m doing the right thing.

With that being said, I know many bloggers who abide by their own strict ethical guidelines. They refuse to take freebies – or they state clearly on their sites that acceptance of samples does not guarantee review. They try to fly under the radar as much as possible when photographing and reviewing restaurants.

New FTC guidelines, put into place last fall, state that bloggers are responsible for disclosing material connections. So if a blogger has been invited to a soft opening for a new restaurant, they have to mention that they were guests of the house. Same for product samples. They risk a hefty fine if they don’t comply.

Beyond that, though, there are no official parameters set forth for blogs, which seems dangerous. Although it’s true that anyone with a keyboard and a camera can start a food blog, these sites are becoming more relevant and powerful by the day. In the meantime, I’d urge all food bloggers to be scrupulous, ethical and courteous, and they’ll continue to gain respect for their work.

Also, if a restaurant invites you to bring a guest, don’t pull a Brad Lau and ask to bring three. Miscommunication or not, that’s just piggish.