Jeff Jarvis on the Real Reason the Media is Going After Craig Newmark

Re:Jeff Jarvis on the Real Reason the Media is Going After C... by tptacek on Monday September 06, 2010 @10:16AM (#1666713)

Smokescreen. I like Newmark more than I like newspaper companies, too. And I know craigslist could be making hundreds of millions of dollars if it weren't for their pesky ethics.

But I don't believe for a second that this recent drama is related to craigslist's impact on the news business. The formula here is simple: the news media (and political candidates) likes eyeballs. Eyeballs like stories about sex. It would be professional malpractice for CNN not to run these stories.

And why should I feel sorry for craiglist about that? They walked right into this. Prostitution is illegal throughout almost the entire United States. Without those ads, their service isn't one iota worse for the vast majority of their users who aren't in contact with the sex trade. The adult services section of craiglist is practically a political statement.

Which, fine, but if you make a political statement, you steel yourself to handle the flak you'll get. If you make a political statement that involves flouting the law, you get to deal with law enforcement, too.

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Re:Jeff Jarvis on the Real Reason the Media is Going After C... by lsc on Tuesday September 07, 2010 @01:08AM (#1668122)

>Without those ads, their service isn't one iota worse for the vast majority of their users who aren't in contact with the sex trade. The adult services section of craiglist is practically a political statement.

I'm not sure... I mean, would San Francisco be San Francisco without Folsom St? I mean, maybe, I guess?

I mean, I think the weirdness we see in San Francisco goes along with the innovative culture we have here.

Now, is the same true of weird sex ads on craigslist and the rest of craigslist? I've really got no evidence either way, but I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand, either.

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Re:Jeff Jarvis on the Real Reason the Media is Going After C... by jbooth on Monday September 06, 2010 @01:53PM (#1667077)

Don't underestimate the small-mindedness of the news media.

Why was the iPad over all of their covers? Because they think it's their salvation. Yeah, Jobs is good at PR, and yeah, it's a reasonable cover story, but why was it the cover story?

Why is craigslist the trumped up bogus sex scandal?

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Re:Jeff Jarvis on the Real Reason the Media is Going After C... by tptacek on Monday September 06, 2010 @06:09PM (#1667507)

Because craigslist has revolutionized both licit and illicit classified ads, making them the most important advertising medium for the sex industry as well as babysitters, day laborers, and people with washing machines to sell?

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