DISQUS

garg · 3 years ago

Now Jason Calcanis and Duncan Riley will combine to from voltron?

//spinning the unfounded rumor mill.

Steve Wiseman · 3 years ago

It never seems to change. I have seen this over and over in the internet business world, and it was probably happening way before the net was around too. You have a company or website that gets really popular. The people involved let it go to their head. Infighting happens. Then someone is ousted. Ususally the most influential and the reason for success of the company. Then the company tries to continue on like nothing happned. Nothing to see here...move along they say.

paul · 3 years ago

So Jeremy Wright who clamed he was fired for blogging has fired a blogger.

Marie Germain · 3 years ago

Good God! who cares. Jeremy is bright and onto something big. Founders are a special breed. Jeremy does not waste time. This is starting to smell like the envy you endure Robert. That's a good sign for Jeremy. We have him booked as speaker at Plexus 2007 this May and will have no concern if he fires yet 2 more VPs! In fact, we have produced an event just for him this February, Blogbuster (see brand revival dot net), in TO. He's authored a book, Blog Marketing, and operates one of the biggest blog networks in NA. Watch it grow. No kiss-ass here. Just facts.

paul · 3 years ago

NA..????

Cómo sobre los bloggers mexicanos?

Robert Scoble · 3 years ago

Marie: you misread me. I'm not jealous. I just find it interesting that bloggers aren't very transparent when they are urging other people to be more transparent and have conversations about what's going on in their businesses.

Robyn Tippins · 3 years ago

It really surprised me that my post was even noticed in this. I mean, Duncan's leaving b5 was announced publicly 2 days ago on the b5 blog, and in the b5 forums on Nov 14, so surely I'm not the first to mention it.

Good luck to Duncan. I have the utmost respect for him. But, I have to admit, I truly like Jeremy, Shai and Darren as well. I rather hope I don't know what happened. Ignorance is bliss sometimes, especially when you still work with all the people involved.

Robert Scoble · 3 years ago

Robyn: yeah, it taught me that I don't subscribe to some of the right blogs. But, that's how this blog reading thing works. If you read 200 feeds eventually you'll learn about stuff like this, even if it's two days late.

momspeaks · 3 years ago

Is this what they're teaching in PR school these days?

"Jeremy does not waste time. This is starting to smell like the envy you endure Robert. That’s a good sign for Jeremy. We have him booked as speaker at Plexus 2007 this May and will have no concern if he fires yet 2 more VPs!"

Classy.

Robyn Tippins · 3 years ago

I know what you mean. I read 200 as well. I had to cap it at that. I do have a life off the web, even if it is very boring.

Robert Scoble · 3 years ago

Momspeaks: yeah, really. I'm seriously considering not speaking at Plexus 2007 (they invited me too). Sure doesn't sound like an event I want anything to do with. If my friend Buzz Bruggeman hadn't asked me to do this, I would already have pulled out.

Marie Germain · 3 years ago

Hey Robert relax! I have always been supportive of you when your character was maligned. You have endured your share. I for one am not fond of character slinging. BUT I didn't think you were doing that though; you misread me too. I just don't like the way bloggers are hard on each other. I just read a very nasty post about Mike Arrington and his "behavior" at an NY event in the last few days. This is not transparency, is it? We should spend more time worrying about Bill Gates saying another bubble is coming. As you have. Lot's of people up here are excited about you coming. Not just Buzz. Plexus 2007 is going to be great.

momspeaks · 3 years ago

Sorry, Marie, but your desperation is showing. You can't put the toothpaste back in the tube!

Public relations rule #34: it's never a good idea to pit your prospects against each other in the hopes that the best man or woman wins. It's ignorant at best, foolhardy at worst.

Plus, I'm pretty sure that Jeremy Wright wouldn't appreciate being told that he can fire two more people and he'd be fine in your book - that certainly doesn't inspire confidence in whatever brand you're mistakenly trying to represent here.

Marie Germain · 3 years ago

Momspeaks: My point was Jeremy should be able to manage his business how he sees fit. We all have skeletons in our closet. Point taken though. Bad choice of words for a blogger in a rush. Much ado. Robert talks about transparency and indeed that is what the internet is about. I could not find you on your own blog? No name or for who you write. When a blogger hides and insults others was does that mean?
I must get some real work done now.

momspeaks · 3 years ago

Honeychile, I'm not insulting you.

When I do, you'll know.

And please don't use buzzwords like transparency to make yourself look better. The Internet is not about being transparent - it's about porn, dontcha know? :>)

Methinks that probably this is all just a tempest in a teapot - and we should just leave it at that.

Ted · 3 years ago

This is prima facia ridiculousness. "b5 Media" will not exist in 12 months... there is no there there.

thatedeguy · 3 years ago

Judging from the posts and comments at Duncan's blog, it would appear that he and Darren had some sort of falling out. Over what? Who knows. Whole bunch of clams over there.
I think the remaining founders of b5 are too smart to let it disintegrate too far, but b5 may become acquisition fodder sooner than expected as a result of Duncan's leaving.

howard lindzon · 3 years ago

Duncan writes for us weekly and Prince Campbell did a piece on the hasty departure a few days ago over at THEBLOGGINGTIMES. Catch the link at techmeme


thanks

webomatica · 3 years ago

this week with calacanis quitting aol, mr valleywag getting canned, and now this b5 media thing is strangely reminicsent of the rocketboom thing.

Paul Chaney · 3 years ago

So, it was a tiff between Darren and Duncan, not Duncan and Jeremy?

Oh, and I must say, I love the way comment threads take on a life of their own...the discussion between momspeaks and Marie is more invigorating than the subject of the post.

marie germain · 3 years ago

Paul: Indeed. Too many bloggers know that commenting on Robert's blog bumps their views and that's OK. Attention-getting vitriol is a tactic. To Momspeaks' disappointment, Robert and I have overcome this faceless provocatrice's intrusion whoever she/he may be. You can say anything including, "internet is porn", and risk no loss of reputation when you hide your name and face on your own blog. There is perhaps a hidden agenda here. This type of stealth blogger is what scares corporations from the realm. Identity is key right now and will separate the wheat from the chaff. I await mainstream vlogging.

Adam · 3 years ago

Maybe I'm just in a snarky mood, but -- here's a crazy idea: How about we actually take a breather, and patiently wait more than a nanosecond FOR PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES?

Enough with the "Where's the announcement?! Where's the valleywagging? How come IT'S NOT BEING BLOGGED TWO SECONDS AFTER IT HAPPENED?"

$#!( real time sometimes. I don't know Duncan, I've never met him personally, and frankly I didn't really keep up on his writing.

But he's a person. For crying out loud, don't he and Nick Douglas (okay, maybe not Nick) and other folks who just happen to write online deserve a bit of privacy, a few moments on their own to reflect upon and write -- or even not write -- about what's going on with them professionally and personally?

Robert, neither you nor I nor anyone else here is owed anything by these folks. There's no grand law which dictates transparency-uber-alles, in the blogosphere or otherwise. And frankly, I'm sick of this sense of bloggy entitlement. I'm sick of all the rantings and ravings about who breaks a story first, how many bloggers can me-too and pile on, and so on. It's no longer an echo chamber, it's a bunch of folks with video cameras and pitchforks and megaphones thrown into one of those carnival centrifugal force whirlie thingies... puking simultaneously.

IMHO, everyone needs to take a chill pill. Log off for a day or a week. Or at least boycott techmeme and tailrank and technorati and so on during that downtime not because they're inherently evil services, but because they pull us towards the now now now gimme gimme gimme tell me what's hot cool this very second herd mentality.

Hmm. Maybe instead of a "Buy Nothing" day, I'll initiate a "Blog Nothing" day. Everyone would read one of those crazy old things called a book (no, not a book about blogging! or tech!), or maybe even just talk to their (meatspace!) neighbor instead of speculating on Microyahoogle 2.0 or whatnot online.

All I know is that I've grown weary of the increasingly hyper-invasive mode of blogging lately. Let people be. If I wanted gossip and rumormongering and crap like that, I'd live in Hollywood or be part of the entertainment industry.

Blegh.