Bonum Certa Men Certa

Microsoft Media Seemingly Masquerades as Government Media

"The danger is that Microsoft is using strategic monopolistic pricing in the education market, with the government’s assistance, to turn our state university systems into private workforce training programs for Microsoft."

--Nathan Newman



Summary: A glimpse at an unacceptable overlap in coverage from 1105 Media

LAST year we mentioned that Web sites like "Federal Computer Weekly" and GCN -- sites that pretend to have some authority above business (GCN is calling itself "The online authority for government IT professionals") -- are seemingly just serving Microsoft's agenda. Even the OSI complained about them. These sites are very hostile towards Microsoft competitors and they even make factual errors that seem deliberate (serving a bias). As other people have complained about it we decided to check who is behind this network of Web sites that include:



* Contingency Planning * Defense Systems * Environmental Protection * FCW * Federal Employee News Digest * FederalSoup * FOSE * GCN * Gov Sec US Law Ready * Network-Centric Security * Occupational Health & Safety * Security Products * Washington Technology * Water & Wastewater News

It turns out that some company called 1105 Media is running those sites, so they have nothing to do with the government (as these names may often suggest). They offer promotion of particular products and giving endorsement to Microsoft software/formats (like OOXML). But it gets even more interesting. Guess which other network of sites 1105 Media is running? The 'Microsoft press' from Redmond, namely:

* ENTmag.com * MCPmag.com * Redmond * Redmond Channel Partner * Redmond Developer News * Redmond Events * Redmond Media Group * Redmond Report * TCPmag.com * Virtualization Review * Visual Studio Magazine

Here is one of the latest examples of Microsoft vapourware, which was posted in the Microsoft magazines and then also in the so-called 'government' site:

Microsoft plans to talk about Internet Explorer 9 at its MIX 10 event for Web developers next month.


Yes, there is now an overlap between online Microsoft magazines and Web sites that supposedly inform people in government. The same articles are sometimes appearing in both networks of sites, which obviously enhances Microsoft's mindshare in the United States government (and influence in Europe too). According to this new press release, "Microsoft to Host More Than 300 Government, Education Leaders at 8th Annual U.S. Public Sector CIO Summit"

The Microsoft U.S. Public Sector CIO Summit on Feb. 24–25 will bring together more than 300 government and education leaders from around the country, as well as Microsoft Corp. executives, product managers and partner organizations. Throughout the event, Microsoft and its partners will discuss and demonstrate the latest technologies and preview emerging government and education solutions. Members of the press will have an opportunity to attend general sessions, ask questions during special one-on-one sessions and converse with customers between sessions.


So technical government officials are almost literally in bed with Microsoft. Can't anyone see how wrong this is? And Microsoft even enjoys leverage in the press, where advice to governments gets fused together with Microsoft's.

"Microsoft corrupted many members of ISO in order to win approval for its phony ‘open’ document format, OOXML. This was so governments that keep their documents in a Microsoft-only format can pretend that they are using ‘open standards.’ The government of South Africa has filed an appeal against the decision, citing the irregularities in the process."

--Richard Stallman, June 2008

Recent Techrights' Posts

[Video] The Media Facilitates Microsoft's Abuse, Bribes, and Growing Threats to National Security
The failure of the media to properly and independently explain what's happening will continue to doom the media
[Video] The Next Ten Years of Techrights in a World With Changing Threats and Technological Landscapes (or Trends That Are Buzzwords/Cargo Cults)
The video of today talks about the site's (and capsule's plan) for the future
Wikipedia is Vandalism, Brought to You by Microsoft and Bill Gates
Reprinted with permission from Ryan Farmer
Lennart Poettering and Fellow Microsofters Turn GNU/Linux Into Windows, Expect Poor Reliability With systemd-bsod
turning Linux into Microsoft Windows
The Effort to Silence (Squash) GNU/Linux Advocates and Press Coverage
If nobody even mentions it anymore, does it still exist?
Links 07/12/2023: Climate Events Occupied by Their Enemy, Workers Going on Strike
Links for the day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, December 06, 2023
IRC logs for Wednesday, December 06, 2023
A Googlebombing Campaign Targeting "Gemini" Takes on E-mail, Too
Google can do Googlebombing too (the term is even named after it)
[Video] Microsoft Without a So-called 'Common Carrier' (Windows Monoculture)
Windows Has Fallen
[Video] To Combat Efforts to Cancel or Kill the Career (and Reputation) of the People Who Made GNU/Linux We Must Rally the Community
nobody speaks better for projects and for licences than their own founders
Rumour: Major Finance Layoffs at Microsoft Next Week
If the rumour is true, we'll be hearing barely anything from the mainstream media next week
Links 07/12/2023: More EPO Patents Squashed, More Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine "Glitches" Found
Links for the day
Still Not 'Canceled'
Ted Ts'o, Jan Kara, Linus Torvalds last month
Google is Googlebombing the Term "Gemini"
Could Google not pick a name that's already "taken"?
Links 06/12/2023: Bitcoin Rebound, China Downgraded by American Firm, Yahoo! Layoffs Again
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news
Shooting the Messenger Using Bribes and Secrecy Bonds
We seem to live in a world where accountability for the rich and well-connected barely exists anymore
The Myth of an Aging (or Dying) GNU/Linux Leadership
Self-fulfilling prophecies as a tactic?
Links 06/12/2023: Many More December Layoffs
Links for the day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, December 05, 2023
IRC logs for Tuesday, December 05, 2023
PipeWire 1.0: Linux audio comes of age
Once upon a time, serious audio users like musicians and audio engineers had real trouble with Linux
This is How 'Linux' Foundation Presents Linux to the World
Right now it even picks Windows over Linux in some cases