Hi, I have a question about Internet Etiquette/Legal Issues.
I am interested in writing a book about a specific women's health
issue. I have this issue myself and want to write a book about my
experience AND other women's experiences. There are dozens of sites
on the Internet devoted to this type of women's health issue and on
each site are dozens of stories by individual women.
My problem is:
1. How can I legally and ethically communicate with these women to
ask them if they would like their story to be in my book.
2. If indeed I can get a women's story for my book, do I need some
kind of written (paper) release for her to sign before I can put the
story into the book?
I already belong as a member on one of these sites and when I posted a
message saying that I wanted to write a book and was asking for
personal stories, the site suspended my membership for 24 hours and
"slapped my hands" for violating their rules and regulations. I
didn't even know I had done anything wrong and consequently was VERY
embarrased. So, the next day I contacted the administrators of five
or six similar women's web sites and asked them for advice on where
and how I can post this type of request. Well, no one has written me
back to say "Yes" or "No", and I'm not sure why.
I am in a real quandry here. I really need this information, as it is
the whole theme of my book. It is a way for women to read about what
other women have gone through and ways in which they successfully or
unsuccessfully overcame their ordeal. I don't intend for each
individual story to be more than a paragraph or two, and I do not need
to use anybody's real name, so privacy would be protected. I don't
feel like I would have a problem getting stories, as many women are
eager to share (it's just how can I contact these women without
violating some site's privacy agreement).
I thought about contacting women outside of the Internet, but there
are many practical problems to that as well, and trying to conduct
research this way would be very slow, if not impossible.
These women's web sites are where women with this problem go. I feel
this is the best way to find these stories, and they're right there,
but I don't know how to legally or ethically access them.
I've recently become aware of BLOGS. Could this be a more private way
to contact someone or are they subject to the same "privacy" rules
that these public forums are? Please don't tell me to take out an
advertisement on a side-bar or something vague like that. That
doesn't seem like a respectable manner in which to present myself and
my request.
Can you please tell me how to get around this problem and get on with my research?
Thank You So Much!!!! |
