We're sending the small one to Sony, and the big one to Zipatoni!

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Unboxing pix, inside...

Sony takes the golden poo, because they should have known better. We know that Walmart and McDonalds are creepy and they have few scruples about exploiting a medium to gain market share, but Sony is supposed to be better. Sure, they can come across as a little cold and bitchy, but at least "cool." Not engaging in the lamest attempt to do a pretend customer blog the world has ever seen.

Now, where do we deliver this award? Do we mail it to the CEO? To the company that made the blog? Where o where do we fling our golden poo?

CONTENDERS' FLOGS

McDonald's, for 4Railroads and Mcdmillionwinner
Walmart, for Walmarting Across America
Sony, for All I Want For Xmas Is A PSP

AFTERTHOUGHTS

While pretend sites and stunts are common in video game marketing, there's a difference between spinning an engaging story virally and outright duplicity.

Douchebags are attracted by the cost/benefit ratio and they go, "Wow, we could spend $500 on a video and become an internet sensation!"

Instead, people should be asking, "How can we use these really powerful and interesting tools to tell a better story?"

To take full advantage of blogs, companies should stop hiring b-school and j-school dropouts or former web developers, and start grabbing up hungry English majors. — BEN POPKEN

Since nobody should be allowed to move on from their mistakes, we're holding a knife fight to see who had the "best" flog of 2006.

Contestants...

McDonald's, for 4Railroads and Mcdmillionwinner
Walmart, for Walmarting Across America
Sony, for All I Want For Xmas Is A PSP

Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you're viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.

The winner receives a golden feces. — BEN POPKEN

Previously: Announcing The Floggies

We will mail the winning company a magnificent trophy. For now, we're thinking of taking a dump in a box and spray painting it gold.

For your consideration....

McDonald's, for 4Railroads and Mcdmillionwinner
Walmart, for Walmarting Across America
Sony, for All I Want For Xmas Is A PSP

Submit your nominations in the comments or tips@consumerist.com. Winners will be decided by reader vote next week. — BEN POPKEN

Now Richard, on his Proceed At Your Own Risk blog, ups the ante.

"...commercial websites masquerading as blogs...I call them clogs."

Hell, why stop there? Why not just call 'em crocs?

Corporations are trying to leverage the same dubious media tactics on the internet they've used to subvert the so-called popular press. With the power of horde-based fact-checking, at least now we can unmask them quicker.

The fake blog, or flog, was outed after it became revealed that the smarmy travelogue of two people travelling in an RV across America, posting about how great Walmart was along the way—was a shill site bought and paid for by Edelman PR.

In his blog, Edelman wrote, "Let me reiterate our support for the WOMMA guidelines on transparency, which we helped to write. Our commitment is to openness and engagement because trust is not negotiable..."

Apparently for Edelman, transparency is just another pretty face.