Tripadvisor should stop covering up sexual assaults

[Boiler 43,434]

https://www.change.org/p/tripadvisor-stop-covering-up-sexual-assaults

 

https://www.businessinsider.com/tripadvisor-backlash-sexual-assault-response-2019-3

 

TripAdvisor is facing backlash for its response to women who reported sexual assaults linked to people and businesses they found through the service.

As of Tuesday, more than 142,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling for TripAdvisor to "Stop covering up sexual assaults."

The petition was started last week by K., a woman who wishes to remain anonymous, after she told TripAdvisor that she had been raped by a tour guide with top reviews on the service.

 

I do not really see this as just a Tripadvisor issue, you can equally apply this to any web site, even a Company's own web site.

[Dashinka 23,243]

First of all, the piece's headline is misleading as these are not confirmed sexual assaults, but rather allegations.  TA is in sort of a catch 22, but as we learned 7 months ago, the accuser must always be believed.  However, if TA does publish something that is merely and allegation and later it is found to be unfounded, they could face issues from the accused.

[Boiler 43,434]

https://www.newsweek.com/tripadvisor-sexual-assault-rape-cover-survivor-k-petition-1369144

 

Well this has more info and to answer your point:

Quote

 

On Monday, K posted a message to her supporters explaining that the assault took place in the Horn of Africa, “a region where it is notoriously difficult to prosecute anyone through the justice system.” Though she said she did “everything possible to bring him to justice,” she acknowledged there was “only a small chance” her attacker would ever be punished.

“I might not be able to stop him from attacking other people, and now TripAdvisor won’t let me warn people who are considering hiring him as a tour guide,” K wrote. “In fact, after several of my friends left poor reviews for his business, the site suspended all reviews on his page.”

 

Not sure the location is that important, after all if we purely focus on rape and obviously this has  a much wider brief, then the conviction rate anywhere is pretty low.

[Dashinka 23,243]

She called on supporters to “join me in demanding that [Tripadvisor] act as a leader within the industry, by taking action to protect its users and demand safety from the businesses it promotes. The company has already bent to public pressure on this issue by implementing a system to warn users about businesses with ‘health, safety, and discrimination issues.’ But the system is proving ineffective and insufficient.”

 

 

This is the big fallacy this person is "K" is working under.  I don't believe TA promotes any business.  As to the other item I mentioned, this story does sort of get into it if one reads between the lines.  Based on everything the TA spokesperson said, I read this as we are consulting a lot with our lawyers to make sure we don't do anything stupid.

[Boiler 43,434]

Well by being on there it does promote your business, sort of similar to in years gone by being in the phone book, now as a business my understanding is that there is nothing you can do to not be in there.

 

One issue I see with all these is that there needs to be a duty of care to all participants by the Publisher, Trip Advisor in this case, obviously people need to know about dangerous issues, but then not at the expenses of an unproven allegation destroying someone's business.

 

Good luck squaring that. 

[Dashinka 23,243]

That is the real question isn't it.  Ever since the internet became much more useful and review sites started showing up, there are always both sides.  Personally, I do not use TA, or Yelp, or anything like that.  I like to experience life and not through the eyes of someone else that very well may be a crazy person.

[cyclone27 710]

TA is correct. Can’t libel someone or a business in such a fashion. Better to stay out of it.

[Boiler 43,434]

I know people who short term rent and it is similar, now the control of the platform is much much greater, not somebody I know but somebody got chucked of AirBnB because the guest said there was a gun on the premises. It was a dog chew toy.

 

And friends who have a small restaurant have been asked for a complimentary bottle of wine for a good review on TripAdvisor, I am sure that was mild compared to some of the stories.

 

So you have a customer, they trash the place whatever and you boot them out and then they can leave a review make allegations, your listing is flagged?

 

You take your car in for repair, does not go well or you do not want to pay, leave an anonymous review?

Edited March 20, 2019 by Boiler

[Steeleballz 7,550]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

I know people who short term rent and it is similar, now the control of the platform is much much greater, not somebody I know but somebody got chucked of AirBnB because the guest said there was a gun on the premises. It was a dog chew toy.

 

And friends who have a small restaurant have been asked for a complimentary bottle of wine for a good review on TripAdvisor, I am sure that was mild compared to some of the stories.

 

So you have a customer, they trash the place whatever and you boot them out and then they can leave a review make allegations, your listing is flagged?

 

You take your car in for repair, does not go well or you do not want to pay, leave an anonymous review?

 

     I leave poor reviews if necessary. I just state the truth. I don't embellish it. Sometimes the reviews get removed anyway though.

Edited March 20, 2019 by Steeleballz

[Steeleballz 7,550]

1 hour ago, Bill & Katya said:

That is the real question isn't it.  Ever since the internet became much more useful and review sites started showing up, there are always both sides.  Personally, I do not use TA, or Yelp, or anything like that.  I like to experience life and not through the eyes of someone else that very well may be a crazy person.

 

    My experience is there are people who like to leave reviews for everything they do and there are people who generally leave reviews only  when something negative happens. I tend to look at all these sites that way. The overall tone of the reviews is probably going to be slightly more negative than the reality just because of that. If every review is bad, then you probably have a problem.

   

[Steeleballz 7,550]

3 hours ago, Boiler said:

https://www.change.org/p/tripadvisor-stop-covering-up-sexual-assaults

 

https://www.businessinsider.com/tripadvisor-backlash-sexual-assault-response-2019-3

 

TripAdvisor is facing backlash for its response to women who reported sexual assaults linked to people and businesses they found through the service.

As of Tuesday, more than 142,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling for TripAdvisor to "Stop covering up sexual assaults."

The petition was started last week by K., a woman who wishes to remain anonymous, after she told TripAdvisor that she had been raped by a tour guide with top reviews on the service.

 

I do not really see this as just a Tripadvisor issue, you can equally apply this to any web site, even a Company's own web site.

 

   I would report it to the police locally. I'm not sure I would have expectations that a review site could or should get involved when criminal activity has occurred until there is a conviction or other proof of that happening. 

[Randyandyuni 2,682]

10 minutes ago, Steeleballz said:

 

     I leave poor reviews if necessary. I just state the truth. I don't embellish it. Sometimes the reviews get removed anyway though.

as do I and if I use a service I always review, good or bad depending on how it is 

[Steeleballz 7,550]

2 hours ago, Randyandyuni said:

as do I and if I use a service I always review, good or bad depending on how it is 

 

   I admit, I'm more likely to leave a review if it's something bad. As I said though, that's why I take reviews with a grain of salt anyway. Plus a lot of reviews are actually based on unrelated things. I notice on sites like Amazon, a lot of poor reviews include negative things like excess shipping time or the product was used or past the expiration date. Those things all reflect on the seller really, and not the actual product itself.

 

 

 

  

Edited March 20, 2019 by Steeleballz

[Nature Boy 2.0 8,315]

2 hours ago, Steeleballz said:

 

   I would report it to the police locally. I'm not sure I would have expectations that a review site could or should get involved when criminal activity has occurred until there is a conviction or other proof of that happening. 

Exactly.  Its kinda of like the catholic church having a meeting to discuss what to do when a priest is discovered molestation a child. 

 

You call the police is the only answers. 

 

What did she want them to do?

[Boiler 43,434]

6 hours ago, Nature Boy 2.0 said:

Exactly.  Its kinda of like the catholic church having a meeting to discuss what to do when a priest is discovered molestation a child. 

 

You call the police is the only answers. 

 

What did she want them to do?

Essentially take the Business down.