Censoring A Book Review
Elin Hilderbrand has a new book called Five Star Weekend. In my view, it’s awful, not at all up to her earlier work, predictable, with paper-thin characters and a dumb plot. You may disagree with me, most people do according to the reviews on Amazon. But I posted a very critical review. Amazon accepted it.
However, after accepting it, someone clearly complained, because I received this obtuse communication today:
| Hello Summit Consulting Group (Consignment),
Thank you for submitting a review of The Five-Star Weekend; we are sorry you did not have a positive experience. We investigated your concerns about product authenticity, and the information we have indicates that the product you received was authentic. As a result, we removed the review you submitted. This ensures that customer reviews remain as accurate as possible for the benefit of future customers. We appreciate your input and hope you will continue to submit valuable feedback about your experience shopping on Amazon. Thank you. |
I never mentioned “authenticity” (in a book??). I’m a veteran reviewer on Amazon. But I think someone from the publisher or author is muting negative reviews and Amazon is going along with it. This is the world we’re living in today, nonsensical responses from automated programs that distort and hide free speech. My critique was purely literary, noting the weaknesses in the book and the writing, nothing ad hominem.
When they start to remove dissenting points of view, where does that leave us?
