Are Ex-Journalists to Blame or Facebook’s Smear Campaign?
The scandal over Facebook’s PR campaign to smear Google over possible privacy violations carries an interesting wrinkle: at least two prominent ex-journalists were involved.
Miguel Helft and Claire Cain Miller reported in the New York Times that the campaign conducted by PR firm Burson-Marsteller included:
Was it some form of naivete by these former journalists? Would PR professionals have advised against the smear strategy?
I don’t think it is fair to put the blame at the feet of the former journalists because PR campaigns are planned by groups that include PR professionals. Everyone knew exactly what they were trying to achieve.
It’s a common practice by companies to try to get journalists to write stories that are unfavorable to a rival. It’s up to the journalists — the “gatekeepers” — to decide if there is merit in the information.
I really don’t see what all the fuss is about and why people are so shocked. It’s certainly an acceptable practice during political campaigns where it has long held an important place in any strategy to win votes.
(Hat tip @Farkonia)
[Cross-posted at Silicon Valley Watcher]
A message from John Furrier, co-founder of SiliconANGLE:
Support our mission to keep content open and free by engaging with theCUBE community. Join theCUBE’s Alumni Trust Network, where technology leaders connect, share intelligence and create opportunities.
- 15M+ viewers of theCUBE videos, powering conversations across AI, cloud, cybersecurity and more
- 11.4k+ theCUBE alumni — Connect with more than 11,400 tech and business leaders shaping the future through a unique trusted-based network.
About SiliconANGLE Media
SiliconANGLE Media is a recognized leader in digital media innovation, uniting breakthrough technology, strategic insights and real-time audience engagement. As the parent company of SiliconANGLE, theCUBE Network, theCUBE Research, CUBE365, theCUBE AI and theCUBE SuperStudios — with flagship locations in Silicon Valley and the New York Stock Exchange — SiliconANGLE Media operates at the intersection of media, technology and AI.
Founded by tech visionaries John Furrier and Dave Vellante, SiliconANGLE Media has built a dynamic ecosystem of industry-leading digital media brands that reach 15+ million elite tech professionals. Our new proprietary theCUBE AI Video Cloud is breaking ground in audience interaction, leveraging theCUBEai.com neural network to help technology companies make data-driven decisions and stay at the forefront of industry conversations.
