An Unanswered Letter to Jeff Bezos

Christopher L. Jorgensen
P.O. Box 546
Ames, IA 50010

May 19, 2008

Jeff Bezos
Amazon.com Headquarters
1200 12th Ave., Ste. 1200
Seattle, WA 98144

Dear Mr. Bezos,

Please consider allowing your customers to filter by artists represented by The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). I do not intend to purchase another CD by anyone associated with this organization. I find them to be unethical and plain evil.

I know others will not agree, and may even have uneducated and incorrect opinions, but there is a need among right thinking folk to quickly identify any artists under the auspices of the RIAA, thus allowing activists to more efficiently engage in the good old American boycott!

I’m not asking you to stop selling their products—I know you’re a business out to make a buck—and their actions should not reflect on amazon.com. If you choose to be an accomplice, that’s your business, but by allowing the informed and empowered consumer to quickly identify which artists have sold their souls you will lessen music returns.

Doing this kind of sorting is no different than allowing an amazon.com user to filter by hard rock or reggae. Some people do this so they can more easily buy this genre of music, some so they can avoid it. These choices are not a reflection on amazon.com, it’s just customer preference.

There is a consumer backlash coming. Even the oblivious can feel this.

Thanks,

Christopher L. Jorgensen