This is just a quick one, to share this link. I've heard the same type of complaint about the U.S. chain stores.
Almost makes you leery of your friendly neighborhood multinational corporation, doesn't it?
Buy local! (Although as a complicating addendum, I have to point out that each Barnes & Noble store has a position called "community relations manager," and that person goes out of her/his way to schedule local authors, regardless of national heft (or payola). I've been in one event so far organized by a CRM, and will do others in October. This is a very smart thing for B&N to do--it gives the stores a homey feel and is great for the authors and the readers. That said...I still love my local independent and want it to survive. We all need the locals to survive, if only so we know about the impoverished books as well as the rich ones.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
2 comments:
I worked in music promotion for a number of years, and "pay to play" was the standard mode of doing business -- despite payola laws.
Is Harcourt not going to spring for Christmas placement for "The Unnameables"? For shame.
I don't know that they're not, Pepper, and I didn't mean this personally.
I have no problem with everyone being in this to make money (except me of course--I'm in it for unbridled power. ;>) (And you won't find even me returning any checks!)
I think the thing that bothers me is that it all seems so misleading to the shopper--when you see an ad in a newspaper, you know someone's paid to put it there. If bookstore placement is determined on the same basis, seems to me that should be made clear to the shopper.
Post a Comment