African-Americans have a problem when we do not get the service we expect or paid for. And we speak out about it, sometimes loudly. But we can speak a lot louder if we use the Internet. Posting online reviews of products or services on websites like Yelp and Angie’s List can be a powerful way to express dissatisfaction. Its the power the Internet has given the consumer to speak out and let everyone know how good or bad a service or product was.
But these online review sites are coming under attack as some company’s have begun suing the website and the people who post reviews on them. Currently there are several lawsuits working their way through the courts as result of postings on consumer opinion websites.
In January of 2014 a Washington D.C contractor filed as $750,000 lawsuit against a woman whom he claims defamed his business in a negative Yelp review.
First Amendment advocates and businesses are paying close attention to the case. Free speech advocates say companies are increasingly turning to lawsuits to stifle and intimidate negative consumer feedback on sites like Yelp.
Business owners claim they are forced to sue because the Internet has allowed false claims to stay online indefinitely and the impact on potential customers is extremely harmful.
In another case in Northern Virginia the mother of child is being sued by a child day care provider for allegedly damaging their reputation after leaving a negative review on the website Yelp.
But all the lawsuits are not against consumers. Yelp itself has come under fire. In Chicago the Bleeding Heart Bakery joined nine other small businesses from across the nation in a class-action lawsuit against the consumer review site. The bakery owner claimed that Yelp used “extortion tactics.”
Yelp has been hit with at least three class-action lawsuits from businesses accusing the website of extortion. Business owners claim that Yelp’s sales team forces businesses into advertising by offering to manipulate reviews. The also claim that sales people say they can delete negative posts completely. Yelp vehemently denies these accusations.
“It’s not true,” Yelp spokesman Vince Sollitto told HuffPost Chicago. “It didn’t happen, it doesn’t happen, we don’t do it, we never have and we never would.”
Breaking It Down
We need to speak out. We want what we paid for. African-Americans can be demanding consumers. Why? Because we have experienced having our money disrespected many times and in many places. We have a right to speak our mind. The Internet allows all people, not just black people, to get in the business owners electronic face and say we don’t like something. Its called free speech. Now these business owners are playing hardball and suing people for their opinion. How is that fair? If the business owner can prove the review is unfair or just plain libel then yeah, sue. In one case a carpet cleaner got a review from a person hundreds of miles from where he does business. He was right to sue. But if their customers are unhappy then its their responsibility to correct the situation. If they believe the customer is demanding too much or being unreasonable then allow him to rebut the review. That’s fair and is exactly what Yelp should be doing. But as black people we won’t be silenced if we feel we didn’t get our money’s worth. Not matter how you hear about it, online or otherwise, you are going to hear about it!
Now you know