Something really really wrong with amazon.com
 

So I'm checking my email this morning, and as usual, there was an ad for a book from Amazon. I started to read it, and choked on my coffee...



I googled the book, and found this hateful blog entry from the "author": I'm stunned and angry that Amazon would let this kind of email go out... especially one geared toward fans of Disney.

I feel like I should alert Amazon about their mistake (I sure hope it's a mistake) - any suggestions?

That is absolutely bizarre. I am sure you won't be the only person they hear from. I can't imagine how this happened. This seems worth trying to contact someone by phone rather than email, just to get a human being on the case as quickly as possible. (That's what I'd try, at least. Of course, that could just as easily get you a computerized menu system from Hades - to check on your order, press one - to hear more about the Kindle, press two - to register consternation about hate literature, press three.)

Wow.

I'm stunned.
Personally, I would say something.

Oh, yeah- definitely say something. Is there some sort of Wiki element that allows readers to submit such trash, and then it's just sort of eletronically selected as a suggestion based upon shared keywords? (Although I can't imagine what sort of verbiage the books would have in common.) If so, perhaps they need to stop such practices until they can guarantee such offensive crap can't happen.

Looks like their algorithms had a serious fvck up.

I called Amazon corporate - left a message. They haven't called me back yet. I did forward a copy to Cory Doctorow (who did respond already) and to someone I know at the Mouse. We'll see what happens...

Not surprised something like this happens. All you can do it let them know and they'll see if something can be adjusted.

But this is the risk with all auto-recommend systems (remember the brouhaha a couple years when Wal-Mart's system was connecting Planet of the Apes to Martin Luther King topics)?

Especially when the items/topics involved are relatively niche and you don't get enough data to really support conclusions about connectedness. And especially if you are trying to use the system in a horizon-expanding way (it is easy to find the pattern in people who buy Disney books also buying other Disney books; much harder to determine if there is significance that of the 128 people who bought Disney A to Z in the last week, 3 also bought Season 3 of Battlestar Gallactica.

I know this bloke that's hot on dreams. I asked him about the one you quoted but all he did was babel on about a bunch of fat cows, skinny cows and some river. Made no sense at all..

I met Jeff Kurtti on the Disney Magic -- he did a number of presentations on there that we went to. He has a very dry sense of humor -- seems like a nice queen. ;)

But yeah, Amazon obviously had an algorithm frack up and should be notified.

or, it's a fake email ?

I had considered it but didn't find anything mentioned on the phishing reporting sites.

Also given that the email cited a book which presumably he has purchased, it probably came from Amazon.

I also thought it might have been a fake - I get enough weird emails from "paypal" and "ebay" - but this one sadly seems legit. The way it was sent, the address it was sent to, and the content of the email are completely in line with the other emails I'm inundated with from amazon every day.

So I just got a call from a "Peg Anderson" of Amazon.com's Executive Customer Relations.

She initiated the call by explaining that the algorithms that are used to generate recommendations are complicated and not always predictable. She then asked me if I had read the book in question. I told her that I hadn't. She told me that she did, and had a copy in her personal library. I asked her to tell me what it was about and she proceeded to give the synopsis from Amazon's page. I told that although I hadn't read the book, I had gone to the author's blog and I was certain that the book was a hate book... because that's how the author sells it.

She went to the blog as we spoke. Her tone changed pretty dramatically. She explained that she didn't know if Amazon could remove a book from sale - that it was a very delicate issue.

I told her that I'm anti-censorship, and would never want to stop amazon from selling anything - but I pointed out that selling media without taking a stance is one thing, but actually making recommendations is something altogether different. I also told her that I know that Amazon generates a huge amount of revenue charging publishers for placement. I said that I imagined that Disney is probably one of their advertising department's bigger clients, and that they probably wouldn't be happy with a book that they published about their biggest theme park resort being used as a springboard to promote anti-semitic literature.

She assured me that she'd be passing this issue to the "higher-ups" and "webmasters" and suggested that I go into my Amazon history and shut off the "use this book for recommendations" option. I told her that it was water under the bridge for me and that actually, I'd be interested to see how the situation might change as a result of my complaint. I explained that I had forwarded the initial email to Disney and that I'd be happy to forward any follow-ups they'd email me about the situation.

She ended the conversation by backpedaling: "I just want you to know that even though I said this book was in my personal library, that doesn't mean that I share the beliefs of the author. I have 7,000 books in my library."

Yeah, that whole "personal library" thing is really bizarre... I mean.. huh??!?!? Why would you even say that?

Uh, yeah. "Oh, that book you found offensive? I own that book." Why??

She seemed a little iffy....if you don't hear anything further I'd contact them again.