When junk mail comes through the door with moneymaking scams like – make $100,000 in 2 months, its typically supported by testimonials that aren’t quite outright falsehoods, but are, lets say – economical with the truth.
…It typically goes straight in the trash can.
So when one of the worlds biggest business magazines prints an even bolder claim “this kid made $60 million in 18 months” in tabloid sized lettering on its front cover, and it turns out to be an outright falsehood, does Business Week look like something serious investors and business people should subscribe to, or something to put in the trash can?
There is nothing actually wrong with the companies or the people mentioned in the piece – they are all interesting.
However, Scott Rosenberg etc. are rightly on Business Week’s case.
In doing so the tech press may turn this around to make the responsible reaction to the piece, rather the the article itself a defining moment of web 2.0 and the refusal to fall for 1999 style hysteria.