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Gerstmann-gate 'villain' leaves CNET for advertising company
GameDaily reports Joshua Larson, former VP of Games at CNET Networks and the man often blamed for GameSpot's Gerstmann-gate scandal, has been named VP of Business Development at in-game ad agency Double Fusion. Please let the deliciousness of that flow over you for a brief moment.Double Fusion's President and CEO announced Larson's hiring along with several others, saying that the new folks share a love of games and a "history of strong results and success in their prior roles." Larson's previous role was to manage business strategy and product direction at GameSpot.com. He's been dubbed the point man in the firing of Jeff Gerstmann and the exodus which followed, leaving GameSpot an editorially tarnished brand. If "success" is determined through money and not reputation, then it's probably being used to describe Larson's small roll in CNET's purchase by CBS for $1.8 billion earlier this year.
Gerstmann talks firing on X-Play tonight
In his first television appearance since his controversial firing, Jeff Gerstmann will appear at 8 p.m. tonight on G4's recently redesigned news show X-Play. According to a G4 press notice, Gerstmann will be discussing innovation (or the lack thereof) in Japanese gaming and will also "field questions regarding his previous position with Gamespot, as well as his current and future endeavors."For those who've missed Gerstmann's calming presence on On The Spot, this will provide a great opportunity to see the big guy back in action. For everyone else, er ... there's another story right below this one!
Ryan Davis talks Gerstmann, Gamespot departure
It's fair to say that the controversial firing of Jeff Gerstmann was a contributing factor to Ryan Davis' recent decision to leave Gamespot. But it was far from the only factor."Jeff's firing just destroyed me, and I think it shed a light on the other stuff that I had been kind of rolling along with," Davis told Joystiq in an exclusive interview.For Davis, who had worked for the popular site since 2000, the daily grind of working at such a large site was beginning to take its toll. "It's just that I had been at the job for a long time, and a lot of the stuff that made the job fun for me has dissipated," he said. "Sometimes you don't love the job, but you make your way through it by focusing on the good stuff. Gamespot is also a huge site, and an organization of that magnitude comes with a fair amount of bureaucracy, and everyone ultimately ends up spending a fair amount of time doing stuff other than producing the content."
Gamespot exodus continues: Ryan Davis to leave
Update: Davis discusses his departure with Joystiq.Joystiq has confirmed with new Gamespot editor-in-chief Ricardo Torres that longtime staffer Ryan Davis has given notice that he intends to leave the site. While we haven't been able to get in touch with Davis directly, a source close to Davis inside Gamespot told us, on condition of anonymity, that the controversial firing of editorial director Jeff Gerstmann was the catalyst behind the decision. The planned departure follows similar decisions by freelancer Frank Provo and staffer Alex Navarro in the wake of the scandal.In a Dec. 1 blog post, Davis spoke of his close relationship with Gerstmann since before he started writing for Gamespot in 2000. "Jeff Gerstmann has been a significant figure in both my personal and professional life for a long, long time," he wrote. "By my recollection, we were fairly fast friends, though I was also kind of pushy about it." The pair played together as part of alternative rap group Suburban All-Stars.
New GameSpot Editor in Chief wants to regain your trust
We know that a lot of you harbor resentment towards GameSpot in the wake of the whole Gerstmann-gate affair, and we can't blame you. We've all got hefty, Gerstmann-shaped holes in our hearts, and our faith in the once great review database is now shaken. However, Ricardo Torres, GameSpot's recently appointed Editor in Chief, is determined to regain your trust in the site, regardless of how many stern 7.5s he'll have to hand out in order to do so.In a recent interview with GameDaily,Torres claims that GameSpot staffers are coming back to work (those who haven't resigned), and that "people are getting back into the swing of things." He also hopes that their strengthened dedication to putting out untainted content will win back their original readers. What do you think, gang? Is it possible to forgive and forget? Or has that ship sailed, been boarded by pirates, then viciously torpedoed by U-Boats?
Ricardo Torres promoted to GameSpot EIC
Ten-year Gamespot veteran Ricardo Torres has been promoted to editor-in-chief of the site, CNet announced today. "I'm excited to have the opportunity to help further GameSpot's position at the forefront of the industry," Torres said in a statement. "I'm eager to continue the site's tradition of excellence and I'm confident we can move forward into 2008 and set a new industry standard for how video games are covered."The position has been unfilled since former editor-in-chief Greg Kasavin resigned to work in game development just over a year ago. Torres and Jeff Gerstmann headed served as co-editorial directors afterthat departure, until Gerstmann's controversial firing in December. In an official notice about the firing posted on the site, Torres said he and the rest of the Gamespot team "wish him nothing but good luck in his future endeavors."
Gamespot staffer Alex Navarro quits in wake of Gerstmann-gate
Joystiq has confirmed with longtime Gamespot staffer Alex Navarro that he will be resigning his position at the CNET gaming site in response to the controversial firing of editorial director Jeff Gerstmann."I felt like it was just time for me to go," Navarro told Joystiq in an exclusive interview. " Certainly [the decision to leave] had a lot to do with the whole Jeff [Gerstmann] situation. ... I wouldn't have left if this situation hadn't gone down the way it did. ... Sometimes you just realize a place isn't for you anymore, you know?"Navarro has been a mainstay on the site since early 2003, writing hundreds of reviews and appearing regularly on video podcast The Hotspot. His last day at the site will be Jan. 24.
Long-time freelancer leaves Gamespot over Gerstmann-gate
While the major developments over last month's Gerstmann-gate fracas kind of petered out in the midst of vehement official denials, the reverberations are still being felt around Gamespot. Frank Provo, a freelancer and major contributor to the site for nearly eight years, recently announced he would no longer be contributing to the site.Provo made no bones about the reason for his departure. "I believe CNet management let Jeff go for all the wrong reasons," he wrote. "I believe CNet intends to soften the site's tone and push for higher scores to make advertisers happy." And Provo is in a position to know, according to an earlier post on his LiveJournal. "All the proof I need is in the way the staff reacted to Jeff's dismissal and to what went on in the closed door meeting that took place on November 30th," he said. "Any staffer that continues to work there once this fervor dies down does so with the fear that, one day, management will ask them to soften up their tone and scores... and they will either have to swallow their integrity and abide, or risk taking a stand and being let go," he added back in December.All that remains to be seen now is whether Provo's will be alone in his action or whether others will follow his lead and depart what Provo calls "the ultimate soul-crushing work environment."[Via GameDaily]
GameDaily's 'Persons of the Year': #4 Greenberg and #5 Gerstmann
GameDaily is counting down who it believes are 2007's industry "Persons of the Year," and the site started things off with a bang yesterday picking Gamespot's former editorial director Jeff Gerstmann. Today GameDaily did a much softer pick with Xbox Live's Aaron Greenberg. As group product manager for Xbox Live, Greenberg has been the point man in what every console should strive for in its online experience.Unlike a lot of the Microsoft execs, Greenberg has actually been with the Xbox for the last seven years. As GameDaily points out, the success of Xbox Live probably rests quite strongly in that the Xbox 360 seems to have been designed around the service which Greenberg heads.GameDaily also has a Reader's Choice award, so check it out if there's someone in the industry who you think should be nominated.Read -- #5 Jeff Gerstmann.Read -- #4 Aaron Greenberg.
GameSpot addresses Gerstmann-gate concerns in depth
Update: Gamespot's Tor Thorsen weighs in with his personal commentary on writing the story: "I know many of you out there are going to see this as the latest in a series of attempts at damage control. Guess what? You're right. It is damage control, because--let's face it--GameSpot has taken a beating over the past week. However, just because it's damage control doesn't mean we're being disingenuous or misleading."Original Story:After nearly a week of non-stop rumor, speculation and discussion fueled by insufficient comment from all parties involved, GameSpot has finally opened up and answered many outstanding questions surrounding the Gerstmann firing controversy. Tor Thorsen's recently posted On the Spot Q&A contains official comment on numerous matters that GameSpot was unwilling or unable to address before. Among the important new information revealed in the piece: Gerstmann's firing followed " an internal review process" by management. Eidos did express displeasure with Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch review, though GameSpot is adamant that this displeasure did not cause the review to be edited, the video review to be pulled, or Gerstmann himself to be fired. On why the text review was edited: "The copy was adjusted several days following its publication so that it better meshed with its score, which remained unchanged." (Is this fair? Read the edits and judge for yourself). The Kane & Lynch video review was taken down because the "audio was deemed inferior due to a faulty microphone. There were also concerns about the limited amount of footage that was unrepresentative of the game in the review." It was not put back up immediately because the busy holiday release schedule left "insufficient resources to reshoot and re-edit the video review." The version that was reposted recently is identical to the original and was put up "in the spirit of full disclosure." Eidos' Kane & Lynch ad buy was made weeks before the firing decision or the review were made. The prominent front page "skinning" of the site was automatically removed at midnight on Nov. 29, when the ad buy was previously scheduled to run out. Tim Tracy's departure was "completely unrelated." The company is coming up with this information now because of the "widespread misinformation that has spread following Jeff's departure." While the full Q&A still won't directly address the specific reasons for Gerstmann's departure (citing "accordance with California State Law"), it does sufficiently explain almost all the outstanding issues surrounding the matter and should do a lot to quiet this controversy. Whether or not it actually will depends largely on whether readers can accept these explanations after six days of effective "no comments" left the rumor mill to grind out of control.
Gerstmann-gate: Wednesday update
Editor's note: This post has been edited to point out the latest updates from around the web on the controversial firing of Gamespot editorial director Jeff Gerstmann (Further note: the post hasn't really been edited -- we just thought that would make a funny intro.) If you missed it, check out Joystiq's analysis of the edits to Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch review. Gamespot staffers have further addressed the controversy on the site's Hot Spot podcast. After being taken down on Friday, Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch video review is back up on the Gamespot this morning. The reasons behind this move and the initial removal are still unclear. UPDATE: On the Hot Spot podcast mentioned above, Ryan MacDonald said that the review was taken down not because of pressure from advertisers but because "the quality was not what [they] do." 1UP digs up another potential wrinkle to the story: "Our sources indicated CNET management had been dealing with a series of advertising vs. editorial issues on GameSpot -- Sony Computer Entertainment America came down on the site for scoring Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction a 7.5 just a few weeks prior to the Kane & Lynch incident -- and the Eidos Interactive situation was where they finally drew the line. Kotaku hears rumors that there may be "mass resignations" at Gamespot over the whole incident: "Our credibility is in ruins," says anonymous source. Also from Kotaku, the misleading "five star" review graphic on the Kane & Lynch site has been removed. MTV's Stephen Totilo talked to Gerstmann about editorial standards in the game press: "As for the future of game journalism, you asked if it's realistic for readers to expect a church and state separation between editorial and sales. Realistic or not, I think readers should demand that from a publication." Newsweek's N'gai Croal uses the Gerstmann controversy as a jumping off point to talk about the symbiotic/parasitic relationship between game publishers and the game press: "One would have to be naïve or foolish not to understand that there has always been a mutually beneficial relationship between journalists who cover consumer products or entertainment and the manufacturers or publishers of the goods in question." The controversy was mentioned briefly during Tuesday's edition of The Kojo Nnamdi Show on Washington D.C.'s NPR affiliate, WAMU (discussion begins around 44:50): "Apparently [there's] no firewall there between editorial and advertising. ... It certainly looks and smells fishy." Gamespot Associate Editor Kevin VanOrd, on losing a colleague: "It is confusing, upsetting, and hurtful. In the blink of an eye, my mentor no longer sits 50 feet from me. When I need advice and encouragement and shielding, my greatest advocate is no longer there to offer that kind of support." Sarcastic Gamer isn't feeling too sorry for Gerstmann: "Getting fired was the BEST thing to ever happen to the man. He has become an instant internet celeb, without the taking the sleazy amateur video route, and can basically cash his own ticket anywhere he chooses." Organizer Drew Watson talks to Audiogame about the in-person protests being planned for the CNET offices this weekend. [Thanks again to all the tipsters sending in links. Keep 'em coming]
Comparison shows significant edits to Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch review
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Comparison_shows_significant_edits_to_Gerstmann_s_Kane_Lynch_review'; The editor's note at the bottom of Jeff Gerstmann's controversial review of Kane & Lynch: Dead Men notes that "this review has been updated to include differences between the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions and a clarification on the game's multiplayer mode." While this is true, a comparison between the original and edited versions of the review shows that the edits went significantly further than that.An archived version of the review found in a Google cache of an EBGames page shows that, while the review's overall determination remained the same, significant changes were made to its tone and focus. Nowhere is this more apparent than the very first paragraph, which was changed whole cloth to remove references calling the game "ugly" and the artificial intelligence "clunky." While the new introduction still says the game "squanders much of its potential and just doesn't come together as well as it probably should have," the new version is unquestionably less harsh than the original.Some edits to the text seem shoehorned in to point out potential positives for the game. Consider a post-edit addition that specifically notes the game "does a good job of moving the action around, and you'll see a variety of different environments ..." and another that suggests, "if you've been waiting patiently for a game to really dive into the whole 'crew-based heist tale' concept, you might be able to look past some of the story flaws."Then again, there are other additions that specifically point out negatives, such as one that says the multiplayer mode "doesn't translate into a great or long-lasting experience," and another that calls the disappointing multiplayer a "bummer." But there are further edits that circumstantially seem designed specifically to placate Eidos, such as one clause that points out "how well this same sort of stuff worked in the developer's previous squad-based game, Freedom Fighters," and another that asks readers to consider "the somewhat unique nature of its story."While the edits are interesting in and of themselves, it should be noted that they are not proof of any wrongdoing on either CNET or Eidos' parts. Many questions remain, such as whether or not Gerstmann himself was involved with the edits, whether Eidos specifically requested any of the edits, and whether or not CNET executives intervened in the editing process. Neither Gerstmann, nor CNET or Eidos representatives were immediately available to respond to requests for comment on this matter, but we will let you know if and when they do (A CNET spokesperson made an oblique reference to the edits in a previous public comment).A full accounting of the differences between the original review and the edited version appears after the break. Read it over and decide for yourself whether the changes were justified and suitably covered by the editor's note that appears at the end.
Gerstmann-gate: Tuesday update
Official statement or no, fan reaction to the firing of Jeff Gerstmann continues practically unabated: Gamespot readers have tagged the official Gamespot news story rather, er, harshly (see image above). Not everyone is on the anti-Gamespot bandwagon, though. Check out IGN's Hillary Goldstein, CrushedBefore.com and the possibly satirical KeepGirthmanFired.com. The story continues to drip slowly into the mainstream press. Check out Fishbowl LA, TheStreet.com and the Syracuse University Daily Orange. GameBump takes Eidos to task for misleading "review" quotes and a "five-star" rating image in the intro. for the official Kane & Lynch web site. GameSpy and Kotaku are confused as well. Pronet Advertising uses Gamespot as a case study in "How To Destroy Your Brand And Alienate People" GameSetWatch's Kevin Gifford: "Game publishers ... don't care what Jeff Gerstmann or any reviewer has to say about their games. They care about the score, the Metacritic average, and it's been that way ever since the Internet became the primary vehicle for game media." More from Gamespot freelancer Frank Provo: "Even if they don't get pressured to cut me loose because I've made a few posts here, I personally cannot write for a site that, for whatever reasons, wants to bring its review scores and tone more in line with the Metacritics/GameRankings medians, and is willing to pressure its writers to nudge in that direction."
GameSpot posts official Gerstmann firing notice
It took nearly four long, controversy-filled days, but GameSpot has finally posted notice on their web site that editorial director Jeff Gerstmann has been fired. Or, as the notice itself puts it, "after over a decade in a variety of editorial roles, Jeff Gerstmann's tenure as editorial director has ended." Besides praising Gerstmann's work and offering him best wishes, the notice echoes the company's earlier statement by saying that "details of Gerstmann's departure cannot be disclosed publicly" because of "legal constraints and the company policy of GameSpot parent CNET Networks." The posting also firmly denies (yet again) that advertiser pressure had any role in the firing. "Neither CNET Networks nor GameSpot has ever allowed its advertising business to affect its editorial content," said Greg Brannan, CNET Networks Entertainment's vice president of programming. "The accusations in the media that it has done so are unsubstantiated and untrue. Jeff's departure stemmed from internal reasons unrelated to any buyer of advertising on GameSpot." Strong words, but ones that might come too late for many gamers who have already made up their minds about the controversy.Oddly enough, Gerstmann does still appear on the site's About Us page, nearly a week after his termination last Wednesday. The notice about the firing currently appears on the front page of the site as the top news story.Even with the posted statement, many questions remain surrounding the firing. Why was Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch video review removed from the site? Did Eidos (or any other company) bring pressure to bear on Gamespot, even if it was ignored? (Eidos continues to ignore repeated requests for comment from Joystiq). How does Gamespot plan on addressing the sizable outrage in the gaming community over the issue, justified or not? We'll keep looking for answers to these and other questions surrounding the controversy and will of course let you know what we find.
CNET podcast hosts comment on Gerstmann controversy
While today's episode of CNET's Buzz Out Loud podcast was delayed for a "mandatory meeting," (hmmm, we wonder what that might have been about ...) the wait was worth it, as hosts Molly Wood, John (Update: Typo fixed) Tom Merritt and Jason Howell were able to comment on Gamespot's firing of executive editor Jeff Gerstmann from a somewhat insider perspective. Their overall impression? As Merritt put it, "Wow does this whole situation suck."While Merritt did say up front that "there are things that we're not allowed to talk about because they're internal matters," the team said they weren't sitting on any super-secret information about the reasons behind Gerstmann's firing. "[Human resources is] not going to come and tell us why a dude got fired," Wood said. That said, the hosts could offer their commentary on the matter, and their thoughts on that score were somewhat of a mixed bag.
Gerstmann talks, protests start and it continues ...
And so saga that encompasses the events, rumors and nastiness surrounding the firing of Gamespot editorial director Gerstmann continues. Over the weekend lots of Gerstmann-gate (that's everyone's new "it" name for this) news has been flooding in including rumors, forum lockdowns and zero official responses from CNET or Gamespot. And then today, Joystiq got in touch with Gerstmann who expressed some thoughts about the whole fiasco and where he's headed, but didn't disclose any concrete answers to this giant headache. Finally, Gerstmann supporters are calling for a Gamespot Blackout Monday and ask that nobody visit or support CNET owned websites ... it's all too much! Ahhh! We advise jumping on over to Joystiq to get all the details and linkage you need. Anyone have an aspirin we can bum?
Gerstmann-gate: Blackout Monday update
Big wheel keep on turning. Gerstmann-gate keep on burning. If you missed it over the weekend, see our Saturday and Sunday updates, as well as coverage of surrounding rumors and Gerstmann's exclusive comments to Joystiq. Many members of the gaming community are participating in a loosely organized "Blackout Monday" boycott of Gamespot today. An unrelated, real-world protest is being planned for Dec. 8 - 10 in front of the CNET offices. GamePolitics: "If the highly detailed rumors surrounding Jeff Gerstmann's firing are true, then the people who run GameSpot have, by their own hand, utterly trashed a great media brand." The story hasn't made a big splash in mainstream print or broadcast outlets yet, but it is beginning to get a little play on mainstream web sites. See USA Today, BBC Tech (link at bottom right) the San Jose Mercury News, The Guardian, the Dallas Morning News and Norway's third-largest newspaper, Dagbladet (sketchy machine translation). GameFAQs briefly changed their front page poll over the weekend to ask users what would happen next in the controversy. Over 25% of respondents predicted that "Gamespot begins its slow decent [sic]." Virtual Fools has compiled an impressive list of links to comments from current and former Gamespot staffers. [Thanks to all the tipsters who sent in links.]
Blackout Monday: virtual boycott targets GameSpot, CNET sites
GameSpot user 'Subrosian' has called for a boycott of all CNET-operated sites today in response to the controversy surrounding the firing of GameSpot executive editor Jeff Gerstmann, GamePolitics.com reports. Dubbed "Black Monday," the virtual boycott is to last 24 hours and instructs participants to avoid viewing, Googling, or clicking external links to the sites, particularly GameSpot. "Rather than live in a world where the media is controlled entirely by those with the most money, I want to live in a world where gamers who are living for their hobby ... can say what they truly feel about a game. So let's do the right thing and show solidarity with Jeff Gerstmann -- if he can't go to work on Monday at GameSpot then neither will we," declares Subrosian's manifesto.Posted at 9:31pm ET last night, the call to action likely went unnoticed by many potential protesters before the blackout's midnight start time. Further discouraging any chance of effectiveness is the lack of a prominent external page for the boycott (try Googling "black monday gamespot" or other relevant search terms) -- um, the original post is a GameSpot.com link! If anything, Blackout Monday may serve as a seed for birthing a better-organized boycott before the Gerstmann story becomes "old news." Hardcore game forum posters-turned-activists need to appeal to the mainstream technology consumer to really stick it to the CNET network. But for anyone to get behind the issue, organizers must first wait for the swirl of rumors to settle and the truth to be made public. What's less legitimate than a rumor? The boycott of a rumor. (Reminder: the details of Gerstmann's firing are still unconfirmed.)[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Exclusive: Gertsmann speaks about K&L review, future
"Losing a job you've held for over 11 years in an abrupt manner is shocking, yes."While the above quote should perhaps win Jeff Gerstmann the 'understatement of the year' award, the former Gamespot editorial director is still staying silent about the specifics surrounding his recent firing (citing the previously mentioned "legal reasons," among others). He has, however, told Joystiq that he still stands behind his controversial review of Kane & Lynch. "I stand behind my work, regardless of where I do it," Gerstmann told Joystiq in an e-mail. "If there was content that I felt I couldn't support, it wouldn't see the light of day." Gerstmann did not comment specifically on the edits made to his text review of Kane & Lynch, or the site's removal of the video review, but he did support the editing process in general. "If factual errors are made, I have no problem owning up to that error, correcting it, noting that a correction has been made, and feeling like an idiot for making the mistake in the first place," he said. Gerstmann also directly addressed the somewhat pernicious rumor that he did not complete Kane & Lynch before he finished his review. "A reviewer's Xbox Live Gamercard is rarely a good place to look for answers about how much that reviewer has (or hasn't) played a game," he said. "For the record, I saw both endings in Kane & Lynch before writing about it."As for his future plans, Gerstmann seems to be keeping his options open. "I'm not really sure what I want to do next," he said. "This whole situation has left me with a lot to think about. While this sort of clean break would be an acceptable time to think about trying game development, I feel like I still have more to say and do on the editorial side of the fence, too."Surprisingly, the experience doesn't seem to have soured Gerstmann on video game journalism as a whole. "Despite the number of people who are taking these rumors ... to mean that game writing is ethically bankrupt, I don't feel that's the case," he said. "Either way, I'm currently keeping my options open and have been in contact with interesting people on both sides."
Gerstmann-gate: Sunday morning update
Developments have slowed down a little bit over the weekend, but there is still plenty of chatter around the web about Gamespot's controversial firing of Jeff Gerstmann. Among the juicier bits from around the intertubes: In response to a Gamespot forum thread, the new Gamespot Manager of Community Development said he is "eagerly anticipating the official word to be released on Tuesday." Gamespot has halted user reviews of Kane & Lynch after a flood of 1.0 ratings lowered the game's user score to a 2.6/10. Destructoid has registered cashwh0re.com and changed their front page banner in support of Gerstmann. GameSpot employee Aaron Thomas explains why more employees aren't speaking up on the matter: "This isn't GameSpot suddenly clamping down on me or any of us here--this is how it is for anyone with a job." Gamespot freelancer Frank Provo: "Personally, my respect for CNet is shot, and writing for GameSpot is going to feel like a chore for quite some time going forward." GameSpot users are reportedly canceling paid subscriptions left and right, and planning boycotts of Gamespot and its advertisers. Rumor has it that Gamespot forum moderator have been told to squelch any discussion of the controversy. This seems unlikely, though, as the main discussion of the topic on the site has reached 11,110 posts as of this writing. UPDATE: Numerous Gamespot moderators have written in saying discussion on their forums isn't being stopped, but redirected to one of these two threads to maintain order. One thing is clear: This story is not going away anytime soon.[Thanks to all the tipsters who sent items in]
