Comment by SeanLuke | Hacker News Reader

Comment by SeanLuke | Hacker News Reader

This is also a major problem in the music synthesizer industry, and Benn Jordan (aka The FlashBulb, but also a major synthesizer reviewer) put out an extraordinary video detailing all the financial issues and incentives involved in being an influencer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40Q7usuG2Cw

I think Benn is above reproach ethically here -- see how much Behringer dislike him -- but I also think he is wrong. The fundamental problem is that if an influencer reviews a product negatively, they'll stop giving him stuff to review, for free, on loan, or whatever, and he'll lose a monetization source. And if he makes a habit of this, vendors may stop sending him stuff out of fear of his reputation. This strongly encourages influencers to provide positive reviews.

Influencers think they get around this ethical conundrum by only reviewing stuff they like and refusing to post negative reviews. But as a result all we get are positive reviews. When synthesizer X has 10 positive reviews and Y has 20, is this because Y is better or because Y got in the hands of more reviewers? We cannot tell. All we have is a sea of thumbs up.

> This strongly encourages influencers to provide positive reviews.

The problem is conflating influencers and review outlets. These are two very different things although influencers do everything they can to blurry the lines.

It was deliberate - maybe you realize that, but "conflating" is something usually done by mistake. Review outlets are more akin to journalists, in that their job is to sort through the noise to help improve awareness for all.

Influencers are a new breed of advertisers and propagandists, which are far more appealing for commercial goals. Don't need all that "truth" and "integrity" getting in the way.

Personally I don't see most synth content creators as reviewers, but more like demonstrators who have taken the time to understand the device a bit and can show you around it. There are some examples where they are quite candid with criticism though (e.g. loopop). Edit: And also some that are a bit too enthusiastic some times (naming no names).

Michelin only does positive reviews.

If you trust the source of your information because they've been credible in the past, the ecosystem of reviewers matters less than an individual's relationship with a specific publication (or influencer, etc.)

On an individual reviewer basis, it's all about trust. Drive by consumption does not do well in this model.

Michelin is almost unique. If a restaurant is not reviewed, a certain class of people do not go there. This is a rather different situation.

As to ``only positive reviews'': restaurants have been known to shutter when they lose a star.

Sure but that's pretty unsustainable if your entire marketing spend is around getting a michelin star... i think if you lose a star and you go out of business it means you're probably not as good at marketing / product + market fit as most of the local coffee shops etc.

I've started down a new hobby that requires a specific and somewhat pricey bit of kit, and can see this while trying to make an informed choice between different models from different manufacturers of this kit

The closest some reviewers get to outright panning something is making a pros/cons list comparing a given model against an inferior model from a different manufacturer as if they were in the same class as the sponsored model (the other manufacturer usually has a more expensive model available that would compare more favorably, given the chance)

also, you can tell when a bit of kit came with a list of talking points in the box, and when a review i'm watching makes the same talking points as the others i've seen, that manufacturer has _less_ merit in my mind (the least their marketing team can do is personalize the talking points they send out...)

> Influencers think they get around this ethical conundrum by only reviewing stuff they like and refusing to post negative reviews.

Any time I see an source that is only producing positive reviews, I know for a fact that I can't trust what that source has to say.

I didn’t know Benn was making content like this. I’ve known of him (also a fan of his music) from back in the day - from when he was active and uploading his own music on a certain now defunct well known music tracker. Great video with a lot of insights

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