Stephen Downes points to some new regulations that may require people (celebrities and others) to declare when something they're posting has been sponsored by a third party. He also suggests (rightly) that edubloggers and pundits should have similar declarations, to point out any possible conflicts of interest or bias.
Not that I expect any major change, but it would be interesting to see all education and technology pundits declare their sponsorships and affiliations. "The new rules, expected to be implemented by early 2017, will require such individuals to disclose whether they've received payment — either in the form of cash, free products or other considerations — in exchange for the mention. Bloggers will need to include statements within their posts or videos while users of social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat will have to include hashtags such as #sponsored, #spon or #ad."
So, here's my full disclosure of sponsorships and affiliations.
- I work for the University of Calgary. I'm a MaPS staff member (management, so no tenure, no academic freedom protections). That does shape what I write (or don't write) about.
- I'm a PhD student at the University of Calgary. I get some tuition support for the program, but I turned down full funding because that would have meant quitting my job. See point #1…
- I have some mutual fund backed investments. I honestly have no idea what stocks are in them. I don't track it. I don't play the stock market. Yes, I should pay closer attention to those investments, but at the scale I invest in, it's not really worth it. This has zero effect on what I write.
That's it. I don't have a consulting practice. I don't accept sponsored posts. I don't run any ads. I don't have any other professional affiliations. I'm pretty boring. My taxes are super-simple to do. I like it that way.