Comments on: CBS takes aim at a rival, shoots CNET in the foot http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/ The economics of digital content Sat, 25 May 2013 21:53:55 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: tatilsever http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197399 Thu, 17 Jan 2013 00:40:57 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197399 “The site noted that the restrictions only affects its reviews and not its news reporting, but will readers make that distinction?”

It is not like news reporting on CNET involves some kind of investigative journalism. Most of what passes as news on CNET is quoting press releases. Reviews and impressions of products are pretty much all of its original content. If reviews are not going to be unbiased, why bother visiting that site? There are already a ton of quickly written reviews with “we gotta find something nice to say about every product or otherwise we may get review units” feel, in addition to an even larger selection of “we have not used this product, but here is a copy and paste from the features tab of the product’s website.”

I think the bigger question is, does corporate management of CBS allow editorial independence to its TV network. Should we assume that such explicit pressure on the TV news division based on advertiser or corporate concerns is commonplace?

]]> By: nickiler http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197217 Tue, 15 Jan 2013 01:23:11 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197217 CBS has no business owning a review company and then putting their agenda a head of quality unbiased reviews. This appears to also be a serious conflict of interest CBS owning and then dictating the quality or lack of by filtering the results for their own gain.

]]> By: Mazimadu http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197189 Mon, 14 Jan 2013 19:02:39 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197189 CNET’s statement that CBS’ ban on covering products and services that it’s litigating against only affects reviews and not news coverage is a distinction without a difference. Short of having a reporter or editor resign and speak out, how do we know that CNET’s news coverage isn’t being affected by pressure from CBS corporate? How do we know that editors and writers won’t self-censor and avoid covering stories that might offend the parent company? Similarly, how do we know that CNET won’t (or hasn’t already) given positive coverage to stories that are of benefit to CBS? This is always the problem when a news organization is a part of a much larger corporation that has divergent interests.

]]> By: mfordky http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197128 Sun, 13 Jan 2013 16:06:45 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197128 I didn’t know about the Hopper until this surfaced, and since I was getting ready to sign up for service already, this made me pick Dish over Directv! I support them after watching the CES interview where Dish says it’ll focus on users (ME!).

I called and Dish said it would be available 1/17/13. Now I wonder how we can boycott CBS. I love technology and enjoyed CNET – but I’ve already removed them from my RSS reader and bookmarks. As David Spade says: aaaa-bye-bye.

I’m not a fan of anyone who ‘reviews’ are corporate decisions. CNET should come with a disclaimer like ‘advertisements’ or similar watermarks to indicate that it is just a journalistic facade for CBS.

]]> By: Em http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197107 Sun, 13 Jan 2013 01:33:54 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197107 I’m curious to see how this will affect CNET’s relationship with the CEA. Will they still want CNET to run the awards if they know not all members are eligible?

]]> By: Rusty http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197027 Fri, 11 Jan 2013 17:14:57 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197027 Wow…corporate idiocy of the highest degree. Way to go CBS. Makes me want to call DIsh today.

]]> By: Matt http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197023 Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:50:10 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197023 I’ve been telling people for years not to trust CNET for reviews – it’s misleading in how it looks thorough when it’s not well researched or consistent with anyone’e else experiences who are not paid for. Let’s hope they realize it now.

]]> By: JB http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197022 Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:41:02 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197022 where does it stop?
has it happened before?
sorry CNET, you blew it!

]]> By: ricdesan http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197016 Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:01:16 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197016 What floors me the most at this point is CBS corp idiocy in not only totally compromising a quality property in a highly competitive market sector, but to do so on behalf of a medium – in this case display advertising – which is already mostly a dead process anyway.

]]> By: Chuck Jones http://paidcontent.org/2013/01/10/cbs-takes-aim-at-a-rival-shoots-cnet-in-the-foot/#comment-197015 Fri, 11 Jan 2013 15:56:57 +0000 http://paidcontent.org/?p=223208#comment-197015 Excellent article Mathew. You mite want to follow up with something more on the way CBS Interactive gets no respect or serious consideration of it’s views from CBS New York, and their very narrow TV lensed view of the world.

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