Trip Advisor's ';Local Picks';---What do you think about it?

Yesterday I pointed out that restaurant reviews on TA have been flooded with reviews from ';A Trip Advisor Contributor';. These have been mostly one-line reviews, many that appear to be bogus.

Well, today TA finally replied to my email asking what is going on:

';Thank you for your e-mail. We%26#39;ve recently begun to include restaurant reviews and ratings from Trip Advisor%26#39;s ';Local Picks'; feature. This is a restaurant rating application available on social networking sites such as Facebook. We%26#39;ve done this in an effort to offer our members as much information as possible about places they may visit. These reviews appear with ';A Trip Advisor Contributor'; designation.';

What do you all think? Do you think it%26#39;s a good idea to link up with sites such as Facebook, given what the end result has been?

Trip Advisor's ';Local Picks';---What do you think about it?

I ignore restaurant ratings on TA. They have been useless for a long time.

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Trip Advisor's ';Local Picks';---What do you think about it?

Whiz, I do remember the wierd ranking system. However, I have seen some helpful reviews posted by long-time posters. Since TA is allowing facebook users to flood the site with worthless reviews, I have decided not to contribute another review. I%26#39;ll continue to post in the forums, however.

Do facebook users contribute to hotel reviews too or is it just to restaurant reviews?

FussyGuest--I just googled ';Trip Advisor Local Picks'; and was sent to FaceBook. Apparently, TA is only telling them to review restaurants. To see the result of this, take a look at the reviews of Lombardi%26#39;s and you will see that 95 out of 132 reviews are from ';A Trip Advisor Contributor'; and, for the most, part, are useless. For example, one will say ';I don%26#39;t like this pizza.'; while another will say ';good pizza';---something like that. While TA members are expected to have their screenname used with reviews (unless you specifically ask TA not to use your name), FaceBook users are only identified by ';A Trip Advisor Contributor';. The end result of this is that anyone using restaurant reviews will have to wade through a lot of nonsense to find the worth while reviews. I%26#39;ve let TA know that I%26#39;m not happy that they%26#39;ve allowed the restaurant reviews to be compromised like this. Ok---I%26#39;m off my soapbox now!

I haven%26#39;t checked out the reviews, but I will. I have to say that I always just check on the forums if I want a review of a restaurant or lodging choice. I%26#39;ll poke around the reviews, but I hardly Ever recognize a screen name there and I just don%26#39;t trust the review of a ';stranger';. I rely on the regulars here on the forum (visitors and experts) for opinions that I trust.

Also: How does a ';social networking site'; fit comfortably into a Travel Forum?

When looking at reviews, if I see a screenname that I haven%26#39;t seen before, I click on the name to see if that person has posted elsewhere on the site. If they are a one-hit wonder, I%26#39;m less likely to take the review seriously.