Some folks are of the opinion that discretion was the better part of valour (another Todd, I think … ;) — but I think the way things turned out it may have been for the better.

You can call Mike Arrington many things, but when the crap goes down, he’s only a phone call or email away from working things out (see TechCrush)

It may be one to write up as a case study one day — not in so far as what MothersClick did, or what you didn’t suggest, but how it was worked out.

In the end, everyone was able to work it out amicably, publicly and transparent-a-ly (not a word, but you know what I mean), with your post not being the point of damnation for MothersClick …

… but perhaps the turning point for salvation.

(too religious? you’re right, a little :)

Cheers
t @ dji

As far as the “A-list” bloggers go, I take the point about an old boys club being created. I don’t like it because it makes my job harder, but I accept it. Mike, you do have more power than others and, while I truly appreciate you not wanting to abuse it, you still need to be discriminating. That’s your job, it’s why your readers are fans. Not only that, but it is perfectly fine for you to be biased. You have disclosed it and are under no editorial obligation to be “neutral” (the debate over whether that truly exists in MSM is for another time).

We (PR people and the companies we represent) may not like the rules, but it was our choice to enter the game.

As I said on another blog about this issue: It’s kind of like when your own child does something naughty. You worry about how it reflects on you as a parent, even if the kid’s behavior flies counter to all your parental advice. It sucks. At the end of the day, all I have is my name/integrity, which must be balanced by the need to pay the bills – which means that my name/intergity is hostage to the behavior of others.

As for how I feel about Arrington’s position: I think Mike has been spot-on all along. I don’t say that to kiss ass, but sheesh – it is his blog and he has always been open about his interests and policies.

Would I recommend prostrating before an A-lister? Yes: if you pissed them off by your own foolish actions, a la Mothersclick. Just as I’d suggest you prostrate yourself before ANYONE whom you’ve pissed off by being a jerk (A-list or Z-list). We never recommend kowtowing for kowtowing’s sake. Getting on an A-list blog is akin to getting in the WSJ: it’s great if it happens, but, you can still get plenty successful by taking a bottom’s-up approach.

It’s been my experience that you reap what you sow/get what you deserve. In this case, Mothersclick deserved a kick in the ass. We’ll see what SHIFT deserves out of this mess. To your point, I think we were level-headed and sincere and hard-working. Sometimes, even that ain’t enuff.

Hell, look at the whole TechCrush thing — it blew over, and it didn’t have to come to legal blows because you were able to work things out.

What I’d REALLY be interested in is hearing how PR execs feel about your position though. Would they ever counsel their clients to … eh … prostrate themselves to you, or any of the A-listers?

Todd Defren? Are you listening? :)

If you take what I say at face value – that I love startups and the entrepreneurial spirit – then it should make sense. I’m not going to shoot a company for one mistake. If that was the standard I’d have been dead long, long ago.