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- GameSpot Freelancer Leaves Over GerstmannGate
- Posted 12 months ago by Sarah
Just when it appeared that the hullabaloo over the firing of GameSpot reviewer Jeff Gerstmann had died down, it seems that a fellow writer is jumping on the controversy train. Frank Provo, a freelancer for the site who has been a contributor for almost eight years, announced that he was no longer writing for GameSpot.
His reasons? He was very unhappy about Jeff Gerstmann’s firing and believes that CNet is eventually going to force all of their writers to soften their tone in regards to reviewing. He had this to say about his decision to leave:
"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 chose to make these feelings public on his livejournal, which, honestly, doesn’t seem like the classiest of moves to me. Bitching and moaning over the internet seems appropriate for thirteen-year-old girls, but to say things like that about your former employer in a place where they can be seen by anyone is pretty unprofessional. I know I wouldn’t be lining up to hire someone who’s going to be talking smack about me on the interwebs. Also, let’s not forget that it has never been confirmed that Jeff Gerstmann was fired for any other reason than being a subpar reviewer. I guess that story’s a lot less interesting. Keep buying into the hype and getting in the news, web writers! Way to go.
His reasons? He was very unhappy about Jeff Gerstmann’s firing and believes that CNet is eventually going to force all of their writers to soften their tone in regards to reviewing. He had this to say about his decision to leave:
"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 chose to make these feelings public on his livejournal, which, honestly, doesn’t seem like the classiest of moves to me. Bitching and moaning over the internet seems appropriate for thirteen-year-old girls, but to say things like that about your former employer in a place where they can be seen by anyone is pretty unprofessional. I know I wouldn’t be lining up to hire someone who’s going to be talking smack about me on the interwebs. Also, let’s not forget that it has never been confirmed that Jeff Gerstmann was fired for any other reason than being a subpar reviewer. I guess that story’s a lot less interesting. Keep buying into the hype and getting in the news, web writers! Way to go.
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Comments
Selling out in an article is always a hard thing to swallow. I believe all us gamers just want to tell it like it is.....and have it told to us in the same way....
Looks like the straw that broke the camel's back for Gamespot was the same that broke his.