> I now need to write everything with the fear that any hastily written article might end up on TV, with the most extreme word in the article singled out with my name on it forever.
> I’ll keep writing — I can’t stay away. But academically, it’s not worth the risk.
I often, in my role as a community manager, call people out on their words, and they act like no one should be reading them anyway, not really understanding that their statements are public. If you are writing something, or saying something, and you are doing it quickly and harshly, it doesn't seem like you should be able to paint yourself a martyr who now has to live in fear of when you make a "mistake": this sounds a lot more like "careless"?
Don't sweat it Marco. The people that really care understand the core points and know you're on to something. They also know the media just used you for pageviews. The other people have already forgotten they read that today.
In February of 2010, I was asked to appear on CNN in response to Andrew Joseph "Joe" Stack III having burnt his house to the ground, then crashed his airplane into the Austin, Texas Internal Revenue Service headquarters.
Joe did that in protest of IRS Section 1706, as well as the law behind it. He was and I am a software consultant. 1706 also effects consulting architects and consulting electrical engineers.
I was glad to appear on CNN - look up "Michael David Crawford" on YouTube - but just afterwards, all the local TV stations wanted to interview me as well.
I would have been OK with that however I was on a showstopper bug for my client. I finally granted just one local interview, but on the condition that the TV station would not in any way present my opinion as representing that of my client. They were OK with that; while they interviewed me in the parking lot at work, the camera was facing away from my client's office.
After a while I got so very many requests for local interviews that I powered off my phone. I also emailed a profuse apology to everyone on my project.
They were all quite supportive of my taking most of the day off to appear on TV. However my client at the time was on the ropes financially. I didn't want anyone else to lose their job just because I was enjoying my fifteen minutes of fame.
Sadly, over the top is about the only way a lot of companies take notice of a problem. How many times have we seen widely spread stories making a company fix a situation? It's also the nature of the modern journalism beast. Page views are cash, so sensationalizing everything is how its going to go. He should be happy the headline had something to do with what he wrote.
Maybe, just maybe, someone at Apple will authorize Snow Leopard part 2.
6 comments
[ 0.22 ms ] story [ 21.5 ms ] thread> I’ll keep writing — I can’t stay away. But academically, it’s not worth the risk.
I often, in my role as a community manager, call people out on their words, and they act like no one should be reading them anyway, not really understanding that their statements are public. If you are writing something, or saying something, and you are doing it quickly and harshly, it doesn't seem like you should be able to paint yourself a martyr who now has to live in fear of when you make a "mistake": this sounds a lot more like "careless"?
>I’m scared of having damaged my relationship with Apple, but it wouldn’t be spreading so widely and quickly if it didn’t resonate with many.
You know where else people fear to criticise an institution? Totalitarian regimes. At least that's how I as a developer perceive Apple lately.
Joe did that in protest of IRS Section 1706, as well as the law behind it. He was and I am a software consultant. 1706 also effects consulting architects and consulting electrical engineers.
I was glad to appear on CNN - look up "Michael David Crawford" on YouTube - but just afterwards, all the local TV stations wanted to interview me as well.
I would have been OK with that however I was on a showstopper bug for my client. I finally granted just one local interview, but on the condition that the TV station would not in any way present my opinion as representing that of my client. They were OK with that; while they interviewed me in the parking lot at work, the camera was facing away from my client's office.
After a while I got so very many requests for local interviews that I powered off my phone. I also emailed a profuse apology to everyone on my project.
They were all quite supportive of my taking most of the day off to appear on TV. However my client at the time was on the ropes financially. I didn't want anyone else to lose their job just because I was enjoying my fifteen minutes of fame.
Maybe, just maybe, someone at Apple will authorize Snow Leopard part 2.