It seems to me lately that a trend that I am sure started a long time ago has been growing as of late, with many high level blogs using their sites as a way to bring to light issues that should be handled privately.

The latest example is on TechCrunch, a blog that some people loath, and other laud with a post about plagarism, entitled “DEMO v. TechCrunch50 Takes A Nasty Turn With Charges Of Plagiarism” where Michael Arrington airs his dirty laundry in hopes of making DEMO look bad.

I find such posts uncalled for and I hope they become extremely unpopular as such issues should be held in private, rather than becoming a contest of “who has the biggest audience”.

Are we, as a blog reading audience so interested in controversy and gossip that these types of posts bring in a high level of traffic, provoking site owners to continue to publish such information?

I really wish people would stop using their blogs as a way to blow private issues out of proportion. Sensationalism can be a great tool, but it can also taint the overall brand of a site, and I know quite a few people that would consider TechCrunch to be a tainted brand.

Respect is a two way street, and by publishing such articles, you are only displaying a lack of respect that is all too common in the blogosphere currently.

Am I wrong? Let me know in the comments below.

Originally posted on August 11, 2008 @ 5:38 pm