Forrester analyst group launches new tech mag, names Henry Ford evil, Ford Motors pulls "hundreds of thousands" in business
By Tom Foremski - March 24, 2005
...Forrester also upsets Computer Associates with evil tag....pre-war IBM a better choice
The Forrester IT analyst group yesterday said that Ford Motor Co. had pulled several hundred thousand dollars of business because of this week's launch of Forrester Magazine, a tech print magazine designed to reach C-level executives and win new business.
Ford complained that the cover feature on evil companies drew attention to founder Henry Ford and his anti-semitic views. The automaker complained that the article disregarded Ford company's many charitable activities.
Forrester refused to change the article citing it a point of journalistic integrity and said that the incident demonstrated editorial independence. It told Ford that information on Henry Ford's anti-semiticism was well-known and publicly available and it would not remove it from the magazine. Ford then cut its business relationship valued at "several hundred thousand dollars" a senior executive of Forrester said.
Forrester Magazine has to prove credibility because of close money links with vendors
The issue of independence and the demonstration of unbiased reporting is key to Forrester Magazine's credibility. The IT analyst community has long been under fire for its cozy relationship with computer industry vendors which pay to be included in market research papers and gain influence on corporate IT buying decisions.
Calls for greater transparency within established media raises the bar for Forrester Magazine to firmly establish its independence, or reveal client relationships, history and payments. Established media has nothing to hide compared with IT analyst groups who receive very large amounts of money from clients.
I hate to break it to Forrester, but, losing Ford does not demonstrate strong journalistic integrity, and independence of views. It demonstrates a poor editorial decision.
Also, executives at pre-war IBM would have been a better choice of evil because the company sold and installed punch card systems to the Hitler led German government. The novel application was for logistics in train routing and IBM set up subsidiary companies to shield its direct involvement. The punch card system worked wonderfully, and it made sure that the trains could deliver children, women, men, Jewish, Polish, Russian, Gypsy to the gas chambers on time.
Helping to speed up the holocaust is evil. More evil than Henry Ford. IBM is a tech company, I wonder if IBM is a larger customer than Ford? I bet it is.
Why use Henry Ford when a far more evil example was available? Losing millions of dollars from IBM would make for a far better statement of independence.
By Tom Foremski - March 24, 2005 | Permalink
| Category: Media Watch
| SVW Toolbar | SVW Newsletter | SVW Mobile
- NEW STORIES:
- Intel Experiment Could Save Millions in Data Center Power Costs
- Will East Coast Flood West Coast in Search of Jobs?
- GOOG Founders Could Buy All US Newspapers and Still Have $12bn
- Microsoft in Bay Area Recruiting Blog Sites for AdCenter Ad Network
- Silicon Valley Rocks! Charity Event for Local Schools
- Fishwrap: Changing Media and PR . . . Plus a Great Pep Talk
- Top of my 2008 Watch: Berlin Based Plista . . . and Online Dopplegangers
- The "Experiential Gap" . . . and the Growing Cosmos of Twitter Applications
- FT Anger on AIG Bailout
- Shift Happens . . . A Visit With One of My Favorite PR Companies
Comments
Kevin Cimring on Steve Ballmer Warns Financial Crisis Will Impact Tech Sector
Hi Tom,
It's become widely recognised and reported now that the financial crisis is and will continue to impact the tech sector. In order to survive, new start-ups will need to define revenue models upfront and will no longer be able to rely on the old "web 2.0" approach of first launching and only then worrying about revenue strategies at a later stage. For those types of companies, VC funding will be scarce.
Kevin Cimring on The "Experiential Gap" . . . and the Growing Cosmos of Twitter Applications
Hi Tom,
I enjoyed your "Experiential" piece on Twitter, as this has been my exact experience. Initially I couldn't see what all the hype was about, but I succumbed to the wave of growing publicity and gave Twitter a try. Even then, I was a little circumspect but several weeks later and I am benefitting from Twitter immensely, in various ways. I have tried to explain Twitter to my colleagues, but they still look at me as if I'm crazy - like you say, you have to be "in it" to understand
Sabrina Horn on Thought Leader Interview: - Sabrina Horn Says "Sell Like Hell!"
Thanks Tom, it was a rare opportunity to have the time to talk and ponder so many important topics. We look forward to hosting you at our place, for an under the hood look at PR at Horn Group.
Sabrina
Tom Foremski on Silicon Valley Heads for Germany as Governor Schwarzenegger Pushes for Cebit Trade Show Alliance
Thanks Florian, I did look up Rampenfest, it's pretty funny!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2uZZzHfgOk
Florian on Silicon Valley Heads for Germany as Governor Schwarzenegger Pushes for Cebit Trade Show Alliance
Thanks Tom for this article.
I watched the video and laughed about the German accents. They reminded me of a video called rampenfest (google it :))
Cheers and greetings from Germany,
Florian
Bravia on Worth Watching: Silicon Valley Turns Out for Steve Ballmer at Churchill Club
Thanks for that video. It was great.
Matt on Worth Watching: Silicon Valley Turns Out for Steve Ballmer at Churchill Club
good stuff, thanks Tom.
Tim Cohn on GOOG Founders Could Buy All US Newspapers and Still Have $12bn
Maybe the SEC should ban shorting them along with the Yellow Pages too.
adrian Chan on The "Experiential Gap" . . . and the Growing Cosmos of Twitter Applications
Tom,
Sounds like it might be a case of "design to the rescue!" I've been expecting that one of the next waves of innovation will come in the form of design solutions to information/data problems. Visualizations, aggregation but with more compelling visual presentation layer (and thus better or at least more interesting interactions!).
The title of your piece had me thinking that the service finds doppelgangers -- twins of interest and like mind. Are they approaching that one
Tom Foremski on Silicon Valley Rocks! Charity Event for Local Schools
Yes, we should be doing a lot more for our schools. Silicon Valley area schools should be shining showcases not basket cases. Get your tickets now!
Tom Foremski on Chris Anderson's PR Blacklist Backlash - The Long Tail of Bad PR
Branko: As as journalist for nearly 25 years I got used to the fact that not all PR people know what they are doing. And the fact that I get hundreds of pitches per day and many of them are of no use to me--is just part of the job. I screen them out without a second glance. I don't know why some journalists like Chris, get their underwear in a twist because someone pitched them an inappropriate pitch...
Andrew Pass on Silicon Valley Rocks! Charity Event for Local Schools
It's great to see people doing good for children and schools!!
Branko Collin on Chris Anderson's PR Blacklist Backlash - The Long Tail of Bad PR
"My view is that part of the problem [...]"
You mentioned earlier that there's a lot of money in PR. If that's true, then the real problem is that PR has become too successful. Which is why I don't understand these hissyfits you people throw here and at Anderson's blog. Is that part of the game of Harass the Journalist? Having some extra fun by pretending not to understand Anderson?
As for the new rift between journalists and flacks, ten years ago us journalists couldn'
Jeff on Fishwrap: Changing Media and PR . . . Plus a Great Pep Talk
Thanks for linking up to our blog! Keep up the great work and let me know of any ideas how we can cross promote...
Take care!
Wallen's on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Very interesting read. Those factors should have effects at different time horizon. For example, pension funds investing less in VC funds will impact start-ups in a few years while angel wealth reduction impacts seed financing today.
There are two other factors to consider. First, lower valuation levels of public companies should indirectly affect valuation levels of start-ups' funding rounds. The second is more geared towards web start-ups: such a banking crisis could translate in s
rawdawgbuffalo on FT Anger on AIG Bailout
The the vultures are circling and the fat lady aint started singin' yet
Todd Defren on Shift Happens . . . A Visit With One of My Favorite PR Companies
It was great to spend some quality time with you, Tom. Hope to catch up again the next time I am in town!
Julie Crabill on Shift Happens . . . A Visit With One of My Favorite PR Companies
Thanks for coming by, Tom, it was great to see you and hear your always insightful commentary on the media biz. Hopefully some of the things we talked about will happen - and hopefully some of the others won't. :-)
Beyondmusic on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Very interesting read..
Tom Foremski on Silicon Valley and Wall Street: We're Not Immune - Here's Why
Greg: You make a fair point. Investing in startups can be incredibly profitable but only one in 20 succeed. And it all depends on which stage of investment. Angel investors hold the highest risks and can be wiped out by later stage financing.
And how will investors get their money out if the exits are closed? Granted, the exits won't be closed forever but the liquidity of markets is a key factor in continuing the cycles of investment.