Ever heard of a slam book? It’s a notebook, usually owned by a junior high girl, in which she and her friends write terrible things about their classmates or teachers. Well, now the online equivalent has been created. Unvarnished is a new social networking site that allows people to review others’ professional career, work ethic, etc. The controversy is…individuals can make those reviews anonymously.

Their vision: a site that encourages candid and nuanced information about prospective hires, bosses and business partners.

So far Unvarnished, which is in private testing at GetUnvarnished.com, has hundreds of users and thousands of reviews. The company preloaded 400,000 professional profiles.

Critics say Unvarnished gives a bully pulpit to unscrupulous users who will unfairly sully the reputations of others, harming their ability to land jobs and promotions. Lawyers say the site is a litigation nightmare.

In all liklihood, the argument is moot–LinkedIn is the largest company of its kind and likely to remain so. And it doesn’t allow for the same sort of online libel that Unvarnished does.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sc-biz-unvarnished-story–20100405,0,758983.story