aegies said:
With regards to Press Reset, it's advertiser-sponsored content. Microsoft, via Internet Explorer and Windows, has sponsored hundreds if not thousands of television programs over the last 20 years with similar agreements, though in this case, they pitched us on the kind of thing we could make with the sponsorship deal.
Why would MS give you money specifically to make a documentary promoting your own site?
The obvious answer is they expect some sort of quid pro quo. Whether or not that expectation is valid is a question, but that that expectation exists is really the most logical explanation.
As far as the GAF hive mind being hostile to the press - personally, to be blunt, I am hostile towards you because of specific actions you've taken in the past that have earned hostility.
In particular it's kind of hard not to be hostile towards someone who takes a large amount of money donated to them specifically for the purpose of running and improving a podcast they are on, then 6 months later hear them joking on air about how they don't have enough microphones for everyone and hey where did all that money go?
Should I not be hostile towards someone who cynically uses the genuine goodwill people feel about others losing their jobs as a way to profit?
At any point you could have disclosed what the money was going to, but you steadfastly chose not to, presumably because the money was simply pocketed. That's the natural conclusion one would draw anyway.
You might notice that although you claim that GAF is hostile to the press in general they are a lot more hostile to you personally than to someone like Jeff Green or Shawn Elliot. That could be some sort of random unexplainable mystery, or it could be because Jeff Green isn't a scammer.
Whether or not your whole Rebel FM thing was a cynical scam you can argue, but if you had been up front about it from the start your reputation would be completely different here on Neogaf - a reputation you earned. Maybe in your heart of hearts you know you are a swell guy and that money totally went to legit things but that fact that week after week I would read questions asking where that money was going and week after week you all refused to answer makes it hard draw positive conclusions.