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It's starting to feel like the animosity towards Uber is somehow coordinated. I get that a bad joke (with the sinister undertone of being not so much a joke) from a C-level hit home with journalists. But there is supposed to be a standard of no-bias from journalists and that should extend to matters that include journalism. Where is his side of the story? Acting like he doesn't have one is part of the problem.

Every article on Uber that I can remember reading feels like a negative hit piece. It's like Uber isn't greasing the right palms or something. It is scary annoying that who you know and how effectively you stroke the egos of journalists still accounts for more than the quality of your service and the soundness of your business.

I just get the feeling someone is trying to send Uber a message. Something like: "pay-up or the hits will keep coming".




I think there's some truth in what you say about stroking journalists egos, but remember, nobody is forcing Uber to play so aggressively; they're doing it for the sake of growth.

Revolutionary, fast-growing, successful companies are going to be scrutinized no matter what. It's up to the Uber exec and PR teams to decide when to put on the brakes--at the expense of growth--to avoid it.

Certainly there are other groundbreaking companies (e.g., SpaceX) that haven't found themselves in Uber's position, and it's likely due to their leadership, not their ability or willingness to pay off journalists.


>Every article on Uber that I can remember reading feels like a negative hit piece..... Something like: "pay-up or the hits will keep coming".

If every article is negative so as to extort money then that's quite a grand conspiracy amongst the worlds journalists going on. Maybe the simpler explanation is their just not liking companies behaving like dicks?


Cui bono—“to whose benefit?”

Perhaps there are some disgruntled investors who feel they missed out on the chance to participate in the $100 billion super-unicorn of the decade.


Starting? It really has been. Even Al Franken nonsensical public email or whatever. I'm assuming that competition is really reaping the benefits.


Didn't sound like much of a joke to me.




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