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Episode details

World Service,27 Sep 2025,17 mins

BBC Trending: Goodreads’ ‘unfair’ rating problem

Trending

Available for over a year

BBC Trending investigates how negative ‘pre-read’ and pre-publication Goodreads ratings are leaving writers - and readers - mystified. Goodreads is a popular website that invites users to track and share their reading habits – through ratings and reviews. But before they even hit the market, some books have attracted negative ratings, leaving authors mystified about who’s behind them. So where are these ‘unfair’ ratings coming from - is this the work of individuals with vendettas or bots? And what can be done to stop them? Presenter and Producer: Jonathan Griffin Editor: Flora Carmichael

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