This is a paid review.

Three months ago, I wrote a short article on PayPerPost.com, a blog-for-pay company that received a lot of flak for luring bloggers to dish about stuff they couldn’t care less about sans disclosure.

Yesterday, I received an email from TextLinkAds saying that my blog was “pre-approved” to join a new blog advertising system called ReviewMe. Skeptic that I am, I was just about ready to mash this one like a poor potato. Bloggers like me are always on the lookout for ways to cash in, so to speak, either to make ends meet or speculate on our next trip abroad or gadget purchase. Honestly, I make enough to support myself and my cravings. I don’t make money from this blog per se, but it is the coat hanger of my credibilty. Nowhere else can anyone express themselves better than through their personal blogs. PayPerPost and ReviewMe puts our dignity as writers on a balance — perhaps tipped more heavily on their end. Half a decade ago blogging was nothing more than a hobby for everyone. Now it’s behaving more and more like mainstream media. People nowadays are scouring blogs for opinions, or perhaps information in aid of opinions. That’s because the blogosphere is still relatively unadulterated compared to television and print with minimal extraneous influences and advertising. But all of that is changing. Like it or not, bloggers are gaining leverage in our day-to-day influences. From cooking to buying stocks, which roof tile to buy and who to vote for, blogs are giving bookstores and libraries a run for their money. As their influence grows, it is inevitable that the subject of making money comes into the picture.
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