WE Seal of approval program

WE Seal of Approval Program (WSA) was a consumer protection/anti mail fraud program that assisted collectors of nostalgia between 1970 and 1984 who had been victimized by fraudulent advertisers in hobbyist magazines. It aided collectors of comic books, Star Trek, movie memorabilia, pulp magazines, and baseball cards. Comic fandom historian Sean Kleefeld has dubbed it "an ersatz Better Business Bureau for the comic fandom industry while it was moving from amateur to professional capabilities."

WSA was started by Stanley Blair, a retired accountant and publisher of Stan's Weekly Express (also known as WE), an early adzine for collectors started in 1969. When one of the advertisers proved fraudulent Blair took it upon himself to gather evidence and cooperate with appropriate authorities in the capture and prosecution of the defrauder, with restitution made to the victims. Blair had personal expenses of just over $200 for pursuing the case. Ron Frantz notes "The grateful victims took up a collection without [Blair's] knowledge. The funds exceeded Blair's actual expenses. This money was placed in a special account for the investigation of future mail frauds." At this time Blair created the WE Reporting Bureau and WE Seal of Approval, "dedicated to fair play in the hobby and suggested professional methods of doing business by mail". After an illness and the emergence of The Buyer's Guide for Comics Fandom (TBG) as the main marketplace for comic book back issue advertising, Blair shut down his magazine in 1973 with issue no.100/102 and under the umbrella of the National Central Bureau (NCB) devoted full-time to the WSA Program and associated activities.

Membership in the WSA program initially was free, although dues eventually were instituted to help defray the expenses of the all volunteer staff. Members were assigned a membership number which they were to display in all hobbyist advertising. The number was part of the distinctive WSA logo, a small square with the words National Central Bureau along the top three sides and WSA in large letters in the center and the membership number along the bottom edge. Gary Cifra recalls as a mail order book comic book dealer in the 1970s that receiving a WSA number was seen as "officially recognizing my sales, condition grading and advertising integrity."

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