
Oops: Facebook caught planting anti-Google stories to press - evo_9
http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/12/facebook-anti-google-smear/
======
Typhon
First mistake : attacking Google, also known as the overlord of the internet
(as far as the internet has one) Second mistake : attacking a feature that was
largely unknown. I just learned of its existence, thanks to this story ! Third
mistake : getting caught Fourth mistake : When you're Facebook, you should
never ever complain that anything is a violation of privacy. It's like a fast-
food company claiming something is low quality food and an insult to taste.

~~~
mirkules
Just as an aside, Carl's Jr. was involved in a campaign against McDonald's
Chicken McNuggets ("Exactly what part of the chicken is the nugget? Eat Carl's
Jr. all-white chicken breast"), which, I think, worked fairly well for them.

The point is, Facebook _should_ complain about privacy in PR, because it
implies that they care about it (whether or not they actually do care).
Anyway, I think your points are pretty solid otherwise.

~~~
bad_user
Many times it is good picking up enemies, it's good PR, but the fight has to
be in the open, not slimy, otherwise it can turn into a PR disaster.

Whatever negative PR they cold pull for Google, it's much less than the heat
they'll be getting for this ... and when you're taking risks, IMHO, you need
to make damn sure those risks are worth it.

------
zaidf
While the naive me wants to act shocked, the other part of me gets the feeling
this is business as usual and mostly just a big deal because it leaked out. I
wouldn't be surprised if Google had its own anti-FB plants doing their thing.

May be someone from the PR world can tell us how common/uncommon this type of
"operation" is.

~~~
corin_
I've never been involved in this sort of PR, but basically the big deal isn't
that it happens, it's that they got caught.

While it's behind the scenes it's hard to say how much it happens, but it
doesn't really matter. I mean, the PR firm were trying to spoon feed a writer
with information he could use to write a story, if he decides that information
is worth writing, and readers decide it's worth reading, then fair enough.

But it's an important story because Facebook have failed to keep secret the
fact that they are trying to attack Google, and that will have implications on
politics between those two companies. Even if Google already knew that
Facebook were doing this kind of stuff (more than likely), Facebook being
outed changes how Google can act towards them with a different public
reaction.

~~~
bad_user

        the big deal isn't that it happens, 
        it's that they got caught
    

Big words, no references ... not wanting to do an ad-hominem here, although I
could ;) ... at least provide some anecdotal evidence that software companies,
in Silicon Valley, as public and as visible as Google are doing it.

Thanks,

------
tokenadult
Submission of Daily Beast reporting:

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2539932>

------
theoj
It's a low return high risk move. Low return because Social Circles is not a
major player or a significant threat. Large risk because it's very likely you
will be outted and it's a very large, public failure.

Why would anyone want to do this?

~~~
josefresco
Having even a faint cloud of uncertainty hovering over a competitor (direct or
not) is an advantage even if you don't have a specific product to promote in
place. Think of this as more of a psychological war to win the hearts/minds of
the consumer marketplace.

~~~
hexley
It's deflection

------
rbanffy
It really felt good clicking the "Like" button ;-)

------
josefresco
So this isn't okay but Google hiring pro lobbyists to swoon politicians for
favorable laws isn't?

We need to get over this ideal that just because a company is in tech it's
somehow "above" the business as usual tactics that have worked for
generations.

~~~
arkitaip
1.Correct, a smear campaign is not the same as lobbying. Hence the outrage.

2\. How is a smear campaign "business as usual"? Just because Zuckerberg has
low ethical standards doesn't mean that you or I have to. As strange as it may
seem, it's quite possible to run a successful business without psyops and
Zero-sum mentality.

~~~
josefresco
I would argue that an element of lobbying is in fact the practice of
"smearing" or otherwise clouding the perception of a competitor or opposing
viewpoint.

I think your classification of Zuckerberg as having low ethical standards is
quite a laughable assumption. Do you know him personally or did you just watch
the movie?

~~~
anatoly
"They 'trust me'. Dumb fucks."

------
symptic
Facebook: Do some evil.

------
phonejammer
Finally facebook has a counterpart, which is a lot more better since Google is
now fully dedicated to innovate Google as a Social Networking Titan, this
might have been a disaster for facebook. phone jammer
[http://www.espow.com/wholesale-security-surveillance-
jammer....](http://www.espow.com/wholesale-security-surveillance-jammer.html)

------
ignifero
How prevalent is this tactic of spreading FUD about competitors? And does it
usually work in with blogs? Is every blog post we read a result of PR lobbying
on the media/bloggers?

Inside facebook says it's an industry practice, but i dont trust
insidefacebook, they always tend to kiss facebook's ass too hard:
[http://www.insidefacebook.com/2011/05/12/facebooks-failed-
pr...](http://www.insidefacebook.com/2011/05/12/facebooks-failed-privacy-pr-
campaign-against-google-an-industry-practice-poorly-done/)

------
1010011010
<http://i.imgur.com/1DhKP.jpg>

~~~
corin_
Earlier today someone questioned a submission and its relevance to HN, saying
submissions are becomming more and more like reddit, and "what's next, imgur
links?".

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2539824>

In my reply I explained why he was wrong about that submission. And now,
coincidentally, this is the first time I've seen an ingur link on HN. If only
he hadn't deleted his comments, I'd know who he was and go apologise to him
for downplaying his prediction.

~~~
1010011010
You're welcome. Also:
[http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Anews.ycombinator.com+%...](http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Anews.ycombinator.com+%22imgur.com%22)

~~~
Xk
One of the ten links on the first page is to a zero-content image intended for
humor, and it's from six days ago. The other nine are content: screenshots to
prove things, pictures of work environment, etc.

