Bonum Certa Men Certa

The Public Relations 'Industry' Has Co-opted the Media to Attack Software Freedom

Video download link



Summary: Free/libre software is under attack, but those who attack it hide behind proxies and PR firms (sometimes they even send an expedition of employees to bury/censor links to Techrights); we need to talk about IBM, which has begun doing that along with more familiar villains such as Microsoft

THIS morning we (re)published a good article from Alex Oliva, the person who left IBM as soon as Red Hat was taken over by IBM. We commend and applaud him for that. He also had some stories to tell after he had left. IBM doesn't care about freedom and sometimes IBM actively fights against it, just like Microsoft did for its entire existence, unlike Red Hat.



Red Hat at this moment of time is just a name or a brand; the same is true for Fedora, which is "its master's voice" (IBM being the master -- a term that was hardly deemed problematic before IBM arrived at the scene).

"IBM doesn't care about freedom and sometimes IBM actively fights against it, just like Microsoft did for its entire existence, unlike Red Hat."It has meanwhile occurred to me that while recording this video I said that Linux-Libre 5.12 hadn't been released by Alex just yet. As of the time of writing the text (about the video above), it's officially out! Maybe it was even announced while I was recording the video.

In any event, the video shows the sort of biased media we're dealing with and who really owns it, who pays it, and why it defames people whom the sponsors (IBM in this case) are desperate to "cancel" (banish or ostracise from society for no crime at all, unlike IBM's crimes!) and while this video focuses on ZDNet we could just as well mention other publishers, including those deemed responsible for 'ousting' (temporarily) Linus Torvalds at the end of 2018 (there are IBM connections there as well).

Of course I've become a lot more cynical about the media, seeing how Benoît Battistelli and António Campinos were bullying and bribing publishers so as to not report crimes. They also block sites that expose those crimes. Ever wondered why the media never mentions IBM's still-disturbing role in Nazi Germany (anymore)? Follow the money...

Freedom is always under attack. There's "no money" in freedom and there's a lot of money to be made by taking away freedom, replacing it with control.

Recent Techrights' Posts

There Are Also Loads of Microsoft LinkedIn Layoffs Today (Keep Track of the Subsidiaries They Keep Out of Headlines)
Perhaps lost in the smokescreen
Unless a Third of All Microsoft Layoffs Worldwide Are in Redmond (Washington) Alone, Microsoft Has Just Lied to Everyone Via Jordan Novet in CNBC (i.e. the Usual Any Time There's Mass Layoffs and Novet Weighs in With False Numbers)
Maybe when Microsoft said 3% it meant ~6,000 or more in the US alone
As Expected, Microsoft Uses Media Operative (Jordan Novet) to Downplay the Scale of Mass Layoffs
here we go
Last Week's Public Talk by Richard Stallman Well Attended and Covered in Technical News Sites
and we're looking at about 60,000 Microsoft layoffs in 3 years
 
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, May 13, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Gemini Links 13/05/2025: Apocalyptic Future and More
Links for the day
McKinsey (McK) is Killing IBM, It's All About Killing This Goose, "National Sales Team 80% on PIP Now" (Preceding Layoffs Without Severance)
PIPs are not based on performance
Links 13/05/2025: Microsoft Breaks Windows Very Badly Again, Mass Layoffs Reported (But False Figures, It's a Lot Higher)
Links for the day
2025 Will be a Big Year For GNU/Linux on Desktops/Laptops
with an economy like this, people who don't live in rich countries won't turn to Apple
Signs of Trouble: Microsoft Job Openings for Jobs That Do Not Exist!
Keeping up appearances?
"Special Place in Hell" for Women Who Help Violent Microsofters From Another Continent Attack Local Women Who Did Nothing Wrong, They Just Got Bullied and Deserve Sympathy or Compensation
Nothing says "Brat" like men who attack women, right?
The Numbers Game: 50,000-60,000 Microsoft Workers Laid Off in 2.5 Years? And Debt Still Tripled Under Nadella.
under Nadella Microsoft's debt trebled
The Slow Death of Windows Will Mean the Inevitable Demise of Microsoft
Once people stop using Windows, it'll be hard for Microsoft to sell anything to them
Gemini Links 13/05/2025: Shopping is an Exasperating Nightmare and Making Phones Minimal
Links for the day
23,000 More Microsoft Layoffs by the End of June If the Estimates Are Correct (In Addition to About 6,000 Layoffs So Far This Year)
There's no questions about many layoffs happening this month. It got leaked already. The only question is when (and also how many).
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, May 12, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, May 12, 2025
Major Microsoft Layoffs This Week (Discussed Online)
later we can expect a lot of spin, even misinformation
What Happened to the Open Source Initiative (OSI) Elections: Missed Deadline
they helped expose a number of other scandals
Links 12/05/2025: Measles Rising and Taliban Outlaws Chess in Afghanistan
Links for the day
Gemini Links 12/05/2025: Advice, Iorist Ethics, and Touchscreens
Links for the day
The Finances of GAFAM Aren't as They Seem
MICROSOFT FINANCIAL PYRAMID revisited
Links 12/05/2025: US Brain Drain and Reminder That "Microsoft's Lobbying Efforts Eclipsed Enron" (Fraud Coverup)
Links for the day
The Enshittification of Royal Mail (Post Office/Postal Services) Continues
Enshittification is a thing, not only in the digital realm
Red Hat's Owner is Called "America's Worst Tech Company" (IBM) and Microsoft's Liabilities Grow
Microsoft has about a quarter of a trillion (yes, trillion with a "T") in liabilities
If the Gossip is True, Today Microsoft Has "Large M1 Meetings" to Discuss Almost 30,000 More Microsoft Layoffs in 2025
the claim is that Microsoft is preparing to lay off 10% of its staff
Microsoft Has a Long and Proven History of Funding Meritless Lawsuits Against Rivals and Critics (It Always Backfires)
It also looks like the solicitor used by two Microsofters to SLAPP us is being urgently replaced
Links 12/05/2025: Gardens and Kitchens
Links for the day
Links 12/05/2025: Media Being Attacked (New Forms of Attack on the Press), Many Data Breaches
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, May 11, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, May 11, 2025