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Forbes Goes After Bloggers

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the forbes-make-internet-angry dept.

walterbyrd writes "In a recent article, Forbes bashes bloggers big time (forbesdontbug/forbesdontbug)." From the article: "Blogs started a few years ago as a simple way for people to keep online diaries. Suddenly they are the ultimate vehicle for brand-bashing, personal attacks, political extremism and smear campaigns. It's not easy to fight back: Often a bashing victim can't even figure out who his attacker is. No target is too mighty, or too obscure, for this new and virulent strain of oratory. Microsoft has been hammered by bloggers; so have CBS, CNN and ABC News, two research boutiques that criticized IBM's Notes software, the maker of Kryptonite bike locks, a Virginia congressman outed as a homosexual and dozens of other victims--even a right-wing blogger who dared defend a blog-mob scapegoat. " BoingBoing has a long post about the article.

4 of 287 comments (clear)

  1. What do you expect by MycroftMkIV · · Score: 3, Informative

    from Microsoft shill Daniel Lyons? Any time he can make Linux or anyone connected to 'free', 'open', etc., look bad, he'll do it. Truth be damned.

    Mike

    1. Re:What do you expect by commonchaos · · Score: 3, Informative

      You have a point, a quick google search found a link to a site that lists all articles by Daniel Lyons. Very interesting. Thanks.

    2. Re:What do you expect by vidarh · · Score: 3, Informative

      In the case of Daniel Lyons I certainly hope to see more ad hominem attacks - his writing is so appalingly full of lies and misinterpretations that they aren't worth any attention, and the guy has proven himself to be such a major asshole he certainly deserves all the shit that's being written about it.

  2. Re:How dare people have the temerity... by Senjutsu · · Score: 3, Informative

    We're talking about written material posted on blogs here, so slander is right out. That leaves libel.

    Now the thing about libel is, it can't be libel if it's actually true (at least in the US, where Forbes is based). The Forbes article bitches about, among other things, bloggers saying mean things about poor little old Kryptonite Corporation. But the things is, what they were saying was true; the company was selling faulty, easily picked locks and hoping no one would notice. Ergo, what the bloggers were posting wasn't remotely libelous.

    Since what the article is attacking meets neither the standard for slander nor libel, that leaves good old fashioned free speech. So the assertion made by many here is valid: Forbes Magazine is attacking Free Speech.