Dark Days for Autograph and Card Grading Collectors are Here!
In recent months, there has been disturbing news for autograph collectors finding authentic autographs and collectors who grade non sportscards and sportscards. Collector’s Universe who is the parent company of PSA is under FBI investigation for grading a trimmed Honus Wagner card by Bill Maestro and their autograph division PSA/DNA. Both stories have been reported by Barron’s a Wall Street journal publication, hallsofshame.com, manuscript society and the universal autograph collectors club (UACC). ESPN did a 30 for 30 story on the Honus Wagner trimmed graded card. This is very disturbing and I find misleading because Collector’s Universe claims that PSA and PSA/DNA is reputable. If Collector’s Universe is reputable why don’t they take the card and get it out of their graded case and put another case and mark it as being trimmed. This very card was sold at auction and sold to the owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks and was on display at the baseball hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York. PSA has not made any announcement on their website to make it known to their clients/customers. It has been known in the publications mentioned above that one of the shareholders knew about it and still had graded to make PSA a name for itself. This has been a clear indication that PSA/DNA, PSA and their parent company, Collector’s Universe and JSA that all they care about is the almighty dollar not making the hobby a better place for collectors finding genuine memorabilia, cards, and autographs. I do want to point out that they are a company that wants to make money through profits which is fine but do it in a honest and reputable way. Collector’s Universe should have been devised a way where profits don’t get in the way of making bad decisions caused by greed. Collector’s Universe should have set up their companies more like CCG who grades comicbooks. The comic book graders for CCG must have at least over 20 years of experience and can not still own a comic book store. What this does for the grader is make his decision based on the good ethics and the good of the hobby. This is not true for Collectors Universe, PSA/DNA, and PSA card grading. The same goes for JSA. PSA/DNA in particular allow their autograph dealers to still sell autographs while they grade other people’s decision.
There has been reports by various sources that many autographs authenticated by PSA/DNA have been fake autographs. They do get thousands of items weekly or daily basis and is very easy to pass off a fake autograph as real. Collectors pay money For PSA/DNA and James Spencer Authentication (JSA)to be right and know what they are doing. It is not easy to authenticate autographs when forgers are rampant especially on Ebay. Every time a forger is taken down ten more pop up and forge autographs on stuff in their basement.