Unfair Advantage: DeafRead Editors Should Recuse Themselves
DeafRead Awards Contest Ethics Questioned
I’ve heard a lot of grumbling lately about the DeafRead editors being candidates for the upcoming DeafRead Awards taking place in California next month. Nearly all of the editors have been nominated in one or more award categories. I have to agree with those who think this stinks to high heaven.
When a contest takes place, there’s always the fine print in terms of eligibility. It goes something like this: “Employees, volunteers, immediate family members, and anyone working directly for the organization or on the contest are not eligible to enter.”
All of the DeafRead editors should have automatically been disqualified from participation in this awards contest. Especially since they are the ones running the contest, counting and “analyzing the votes”. On top of that, your e-mail address is required for you to vote, which allows them to know whether or not you voted for them. This puts undue pressure on some to vote a certain way, giving the editors an unfair advantage. They also have more name recognition than most due to their names and blogs being prominently displayed on the DeafRead web site.
I seriously question the DeafRead editor’s ethics and judgment in allowing themselves to participate in a contest they are running. Frankly, it’s plain wrong. The editors should immediately recuse themselves from the contest and call for a revote. It’s the right thing to do.
41 comments January 24, 2008
