TechCrunch Intern Kerfuffle Highlights Importance of Ethics and Tech

by James Hatch on February 5, 2010

If you read the comments, which come from a surprising amount of people with vanity domains and from people using their real names, you’ll notice that people may be suspecting pretty much every review of a business because one person decided to take more than their wage in compensation for said review. Bias is a horrible thing when it is self-induced, but to be compensated and put your ethics aside to get something makes it even worse. The person involved is underage, and didn’t really go public about the specifics [although TechCrunch did go a bit deeper into the issue] but in essence, the same thing that troubles me about politics and deal-making behind closed doors is the same thing that showed itself here. TechCrunch did a great thing in going public about what would normally amount to as a simple Human Resources issue. They told their readership that someone violated the integrity of the company. Imagine if that were done everywhere. You know those classifieds you read when you are looking for an antique dresser or a new dog? Yah, they would be populated with notices that someone took pencils, took gift cards meant for the less wealthy, or getting a stock deal, mortgage deal, or in this case… a computer. Since it has gone public, the recovery of this arguably small violation in terms of compensation will not be as short as if it was kept quiet. Instead of not getting a recommendation from TechCrunch, a new employer can simply pull up the persons name, and their own blog, to find evidence that they may not be as trustworthy as appears. They didn’t steal anything, but they did treat journalistic integrity as a gift exchange. Too bad.

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