[Publib] Amazon fail

[Diedre Conkling]

I believe that today they are saying it was a glitch.  Whether it was
or not it appears they are correcting the situation.  I am sure this
is because many customers contacted them and complained.


On 4/13/09, Knieriem, Lesley <lknieriem at rogersark.org> wrote:
> I'm surprised that this hasn't hit the library listservs yet, but
> considering the heavy use of Amazon.com by librarians for
> quick-and-dirty readers advisory and in print status, it probably should
> be brought up.
>
>
>
> Amazon has been removing "sales rankings" from a number of print titles,
> apparently based on publisher-supplied metadata.  Certain subjects (most
> notably those related to gay and lesbian literature, but also disabled
> sexuality, tantric sexuality, etc.) have been apparently deemed "adult"
> and removed from searching.  This means that they are not searchable
> from the Amazon.com front page (but are from the "book" page), do not
> show up on bestseller lists, recommended lists, "if you like" lists,
> etc.  As some have pointed it, it is roughly the equivalent of a
> bricks-and-mortar store removing certain titles from the shelves,
> wrapping them in brown paper, and keeping them at the customer service
> desk for those who know exactly what to ask for. Generally speaking,
> this seems to apply ONLY to print titles, and only certain editions -
> the Kindle edition and the movie version of Proulx's BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN
> do not have the rankings removed, but the in print paperback and
> hardback do.
>
>
>
> This is also not applying to graphic sexual titles in general -
> collections of Playboy centerfold photography, or Anne Rice's "Sleeping
> Beauty" erotica, for example - are not affected.  Non-fiction titles
> without sexual content (such as the current best seller UNFRIENDLY FIRE
> about the military "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy, or biographies of well
> known gays and lesbians such as Ellen DeGeneres) are.  Clicking on the
> user-generated tag "amazonfail" calls up about a thousand affected
> titles, last I checked, many of them classics, self-help, and children's
> titles.
>
>
>
> It is very confusing as to what exactly happened.  Amazon apparently
> responded to some complaints as early as February with a brief statement
> that it was a new policy.  After a Twitter and Facebook firestorm
> exploded yesterday, they are now claiming that it was a "glitch" that
> will be addressed sometime today.  Others are speculating that Amazon
> (which has made good money serving all their customers regardless of
> tastes and interests, has been the victim of a trolling attack.  As I
> type this, I have not received responses to my complaint e-mails and
> calls, nor have the removed rankings been replaced.
>
>
>
> Obviously Amazon.com is a private company, and has the right to restrict
> access to their retail offerings in any way they wish.  Librarians,
> however, might want to seriously consider their use of their website as
> a reference tool, and to seriously consider their patronage as private
> citizens.
>
>
>
> Tons of good links about this can be found by Googling "amazonfail".
> Some places to start:
>
>
>
> www.dearauthor.com <http://www.dearauthor.com/>
>
> http://jezebel.com/5209088/why-is-amazon-removing-the-sales-rankings-fro
> m-gay-lesbian-books
>
> http://community.livejournal.com/meta_writer/11992.html
>
> http://tehdely.livejournal.com/88823.html
>
> http://is.gd/s5Xr
>
>
>
>
>
> Lesley Knieriem
>
> Rogers Public Library
>
> Rogers AR
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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-- 
Diedre Conkling
diedre08 at gmail.com