I can totally relate to the part about an article coming out about you where they didn't even bother to contact you.
That used to happen at reddit all the time! I'd see an article about reddit and think, "You know, all you had to do was read our blog if you wanted this to be even remotely accurate!".
Got two emails and comments to the same effect. Not sure why this is such a common problem among sources that are recognized/respected in the tech world. I'd think once a reporter makes this mistake twice, their career is finished, but that doesn't seem to be the case at all.
This goes well beyond tech reporting. I've had very respected news organizations attempt to do much the same shenanigans on issues with rather more import than our inside baseball usually has. (Attempting to spoonfeed me a desired narrative directly contradictory to actual facts and use me for unbiased, expert pull quotes supportive of the reporter's narrative.)
That used to happen at reddit all the time! I'd see an article about reddit and think, "You know, all you had to do was read our blog if you wanted this to be even remotely accurate!".