10.21.10
Murdoch’s Rag Hires a Microsoft Advertiser/Booster as CNET Loses Several
Summary: Microsoft’s/CNET’s Ina Fried goes to All Things D, CNET’s Elinor Mills talks about PCs (Microsoft Windows actually) infected with malware
INA FRIED was mentioned here many times before. We don’t insult Ina, but we objectively state that it’s like CNET’s de facto PR agent for Microsoft, who also emits a lot of obvious spin (deception and alternation of perceptions). It’s as though most of the material from Fried comes ghostwritten from Microsoft’s PR. Fried is an untouchable Microsoft booster who proudly uses a sexual difference (see how prominently it gets advertised in a technical site) as a shield against criticism or a weapon for daemonising critics (if anyone dares to bring it up). Well, Fried is now moving to Murdoch’s rag. Whether it’s a demotion or promotion may depend on one’s perspective, but just like Rosoff’s departure and move from CNET to Silicon Alley Insider, it is merely a relocation of a Microsoft booster. “As most people know, she has been at CNET for the past 10 years, most recently covering Microsoft as a senior writer,” says Kara, who works for Murdoch and in many ways helped Microsoft take over Yahoo! with her shallow coverage (neglecting to comment on the abusive nature of what was happening). “Beyond breaking all kinds of stories on the Microsoft beat,” adds Kara, “Ina has closely followed Bill Gates in his shift from software titan to global philanthropist, interviewing him frequently and tagging along on his college speaking tour earlier this year. (Last week she published separate interviews with Gates and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on the same day.)”
“It’s Microsoft’s PR people who groom Fried and brief Fried, who is being used merely as Microsoft’s mouth in the press.”Fried is not breaking any stories. It’s Microsoft’s PR people who groom Fried and brief Fried, who is being used merely as Microsoft’s mouth in the press. So, even more Microsoft bias is coming to All Things D then. The Gates Foundation routinely uses Fried for advertisement, so there too go a load of puff pieces.
It is bogus ‘journalism’ like Fried’s which contributes to the death of newspapers and causes damage to society. What people expect to be honest reporting actually turns out to be coordinated PR which gets orchestrated behind the scenes to deceive people and help some very rich people get even richer. Then again, that’s what Murdoch does, so Fried will be a good fit there.
The only upside of this news is that CNET has just lost another Microsoft booster (at least second one this month, including Rosoff). But let’s not ignore some of the latest from CNET’s Elinor Mills, who usually describes Windows problems as just “PC” or computer problems but sometimes tries to do a little more to indicate that it's just a Windows problem which she focuses on. It’s especially about computer viruses and malware. It makes Windows not just a lot harder but potentially very expensive too. To quote Mills:
Getting tech help to clean up an infection can wind up costing as much as several hundred dollars for a complicated job.
Carla, the editor of Linux Today sarcastically labeled it “Windows is Easier” and wrote:
I see these articles all the time. And yet people still think Windows is good and easy.
Those who think that the press is spontaneous and independent should learn more about Microsoft’s PR agencies and how they operate. █
“After sixteen months spent seeding the trade press, it was time to think of the end users. For this, Waggener Edstrom leaked exclusive Windows 95 puff stories to all of the important newspapers and publications. The PR firm fed the New York Times a story with a marketing twist, the Wall Street Journal received a more technical angle, and People magazine got an exclusive revealing that NBC’s Friends sitcom stars Jennifer Aniston and Matthew Perry would be doing a twenty-five-minute video, educating people on the wonders of Windows 95.”
–Barbarians Led by Bill Gates, a book composed
by the daughter of Microsoft’s Pam Edstrom
