Awarding the Web (Ranking Blogs with Bribery)

Today I received an email from Awarding the Web congratulating me for making their best of web category. There was just one catch. I had to post their badge on my blog or they would give my spot away.

What kind of journalism is that?

I hesitate to even bring this up because I certainly have no desire to promote their pathetic process. Nonetheless, I want to show what a scam Awarding The Web is.

From Emma Lee at awarding the Web.

Dear Mike,

Congratulations! Emma Lee here, and your blog, Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis, has just placed #26 for our 2010 Top Business Blogs in the Economics category award!

You can see your name amongst our winners at www.onlineschools.org/top_economics

You can let your readers know you won by embedding the badge code below.

Winners for your 2010 Top 50 Economics Blogs award were announced on June 25, 2010. If you choose not to accept the award, please let me know, so we can give your spot to the next person on our list.

Again, Congratulations, and I hope to see your badge soon!

Cheers,
Emma Lee
www.awardingtheweb.com

I have no idea how they come up with their rankings but traffic does not seem to be much of a consideration. It is a joke that Naked Capitalism and Big Picture not on the list and they are easily two of the best economic blogs in the country.

Here are Economic Blog Traffic Ranking by Gongol. Note that Gongol only includes sites that have a public sitemeter of some sort.

Here is my reply

Dear Emma

It is a joke that Naked Capitalism and Big Picture are not on your list. Moreover, based on blog traffic it is a joke to see how silly some of your rankings appear.

The most pathetic thing is you will give a spot away to someone who will promote you. Blogs either belong on the list or they don't. Giving spots away to someone who will display your badge is disgusting.

I would tell you to go to hell even if you ranked me #1.

Mish

I suspect others on the list are simply ignoring the offer rather than telling Awarding the Web to "Go to Hell" as I am doing now. It will be interesting to see is they bump everyone up or if they just hop someone not on the list into my spot after knocking me off.

Either way the process is fatally flawed. No blogger in their right mind would want to be on that list with the stated conditions. Moreover, given those condition, anyone displaying an Awarding The Web badge is a fool.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
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