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Gerstmann fired from Gamespot, internet asplode, fallout continues.

polaris314polaris314 Registered User regular
edited June 2008 in Games and Technology
First, I should preface this by saying that no official confirmation has been put out there by Gamespot yet. At least as far as I can tell (stupid Websense). But it appears as if tomorrow's comic is up today :

20071129.jpg

And then there's this thread on GAF :

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=212394

Mods, feel free to lock this thread if it is considered inflammatory, or proven to be otherwise untrue.

I know Jeff has had his detractors in the past, but I feel like Gamespot is really losing a great asset if this is true.

UPDATE : Tim Tracy has left as well. Unconfirmed if this is related or not (my bet is on yes) :

http://www.gamespot.com/users/TimT/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25233420

Updated again : Gamespot has posted an "official" acknowledgement of Jeff's departure (quoted to save the hits) :
Gamespot wrote:
Gerstmann, GameSpot part ways
After nearly 11 years of news, reviews, and previews, editorial director's tenure ends; GameSpot editors address controversy surrounding his departure.
By Staff, GameSpot
Posted Dec 3, 2007 5:06 pm PT

The past week marked the end of an era at GameSpot. After over a decade in a variety of editorial roles, Jeff Gerstmann's tenure as editorial director has ended.

"Jeff was a central figure in the creation and evolution of GameSpot, having written hundreds of previews and reviews, and anchoring much of our multimedia content," said Ricardo Torres, editorial director of previews and events. "The award-winning editorial team he leaves behind wish him nothing but good luck in his future endeavors."

Due to legal constraints and the company policy of GameSpot parent CNET Networks, details of Gerstmann's departure cannot be disclosed publicly. However, contrary to widespread and unproven reports, his exit was not a result of pressure from an advertiser.

"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."

"Though he will be missed by his colleagues, Jeff's leaving does not affect GameSpot's core mission of delivering the most timely news, video content, in-depth previews, and unbiased reviews in games journalism," said Ryan MacDonald, executive producer of GameSpot Live. "GameSpot is an institution, and its code of ethics and duty to its users remains unchanged."

Also : other Gamespot crew members have interesting things to say on this week's Hotspot :
http://www.gamespot.com/pages/features/hotspot/index.php?id=661

Haven't gotten around to listening to it myself yet, but reports are that it is pretty sincere.

N'Gai Croal also has a fascinating article on his blog :

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/levelup/archive/2007/12/05/reflections-on-videogame-publisher-and-employer-contempt-towards-the-enthusiast-press.aspx

Update 12/18/07 : Jeff has re-surfaced with his own blog at www.jeffgerstmann.net

Update 2/28/07 : More editors, including Alex Navarro, Ryan Davis, and Jason Ocampo have also left or announced their leaving in recent weeks. Jeff and Ryan have started an informal podcast, called Arrow Pointing Down, availabe on iTunes and Ryan's website : www.arrowpointingdown.com

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Posts

  • nervenerve Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Mosaic(op of gaf thread) works at gamespot and there is also a report on kotaku about this.

    nerve on
  • One Thousand CablesOne Thousand Cables An absence of thought Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Gabe has confirmed Gerstmann's sacking in the SE comic thread.

    One Thousand Cables on
  • Clint EastwoodClint Eastwood My baby's in there someplace She crawled right inRegistered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Wowzers.

    Clint Eastwood on
  • rchourchou Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    who?

    rchou on
  • The_ScarabThe_Scarab Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    rchou wrote: »
    who?

    Jeff Gerstmann.

    Hes the most prominent reviewer at...


    oh I see what you were getting at.

    The_Scarab on
  • fkn creepfkn creep Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    rchou wrote: »
    who?

    fkn creep on
    t1g3rstyl3.png
  • ShogunShogun Hair long; money long; me and broke wizards we don't get along Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Man I've been taking GameSpot with a bag of salt for the last 2-3 years. They've been advertising money whores for too long. He'll find a job somewhere else I'm sure.

    Shogun on
  • shrykeshryke Member of the Beast Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Do people not like Gamespot?

    I've always found them to be one of the best review sites out there.

    shryke on
  • KamiKami Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    So that explains why there's no On The Spot tonight.

    Kami on
  • rchourchou Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    No seriously, I didn't mean anything against Gamespot, but I don't read that site. Who is this guy, and why is he a big deal?

    rchou on
  • The_ScarabThe_Scarab Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    rchou wrote: »
    No seriously, I didn't mean anything against Gamespot, but I don't read that site. Who is this guy, and why is he a big deal?

    He is to Gamespot what, say, Jeff green is to GFW.

    Actually that might not help things..

    The_Scarab on
  • s3rial ones3rial one Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    shryke wrote: »
    Do people not like Gamespot?

    I've always found them to be one of the best review sites out there.
    Yeah, it's because of GameSpot's commitment to accuracy and quality.

    For instance, in the class descriptions of their Mass Effect guide. Where the character class descriptions alone contain about 3 or 4 flat-out untrue assertions (e.g. the player needs to tap the button per-shot when using a pistol).

    I know, it's not a review, but I still think it's pretty typical of GameSpot. A beacon of excellent - or even competent - journalism they are not.

    s3rial one on
  • Randall_FlaggRandall_Flagg Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    it is important because he got fired because whoever makes kane and lynch felt that their advertising on gamespot gave them the right, essentially, to control the content of gamespot's website

    the implication is that ideally reviewers would not be pressured into giving good/bad reviews of games

    Randall_Flagg on
  • KamiKami Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    My three favorite people at Gamespot are now no longer with them, if this comes to fruition.

    Greg Kasavin left for EA (wooo Command & Conquer 3), Rich Gallup left for personal reasons, and now Jeff?

    Times they are a-changin'.

    Kami on
  • fkn creepfkn creep Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I just wonder why we should care? I've never read a game review from an "official" source that made me feel like I was reading Hemingway. I much prefer to read the consensus of folks here at PA who aren't being paid/pressured. So what if there's advertising getting people fired? Somehow I don't think video game reviewer is a very solid career choice.

    fkn creep on
    t1g3rstyl3.png
  • JimmyhatesyouJimmyhatesyou Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Wow. This sets something of a scary precedent, does it not?

    I mean, if review websites are willing to fire a person whom they pay specifically to inform their readership of a game's true merits, flaws and overall presentation because his review rated a game they were heavily advertising as 'fair' (6/10) and not 'better than fair" (6.01+/10) then what is to say what truly governs the reviews being posted? Advertising dollars are an important part of website funding, but at what point do you let the people renting your ad-space decide who stays and who goes?

    Jimmyhatesyou on
  • wobblyheadedbobwobblyheadedbob Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    fkn creep wrote: »
    I just wonder why we should care? I've never read a game review from an "official" source that made me feel like I was reading Hemingway. I much prefer to read the consensus of folks here at PA who aren't being paid/pressured. So what if there's advertising getting people fired? Somehow I don't think video game reviewer is a very solid career choice.

    O_o

    You don't see the problem with advertising getting editorial people fired? No conflict of interest at all? And what does "solid career choices" have to do with anything? It doesn't matter this guy got fired because he was working for a hobby site?

    wobblyheadedbob on
  • CherrnCherrn Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I don't really visit Gamespot for anything other than video reviews. I don't know why, really, since they're all terrible, except for Alex Navarro's. Not that they're bad reviewers, but they all annoy me immensely, especially Gerstmann. He seems so unbelievably smug.

    ... I don't even know what I'm trying to say here.

    Cherrn on
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  • polaris314polaris314 Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I didn't want to bloat the OP with too much speculation, since we don't know enough about the "why" yet, but if the review did indeed factor into the decision, it certainly does set a really ugly precedent. Who do we trust going forward? Also, I think Jeff will be missed more for his general influence on the site, not just what he wrote. Despite whether or not you agree with his opinions, he does know his stuff for the most part and is always entertaining to watch/listen to.

    polaris314 on
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  • KamiKami Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    polaris314 wrote: »
    Also, I think Jeff will be missed more for his general influence on the site, not just what he wrote. Despite whether or not you agree with his opinions, he does know his stuff for the most part and is always entertaining to watch/listen to.

    That's exactly why I'll miss him, he was one of the people that took Gamespot from middle-ground to a "household name" in gaming news.

    Kami on
  • NisslNissl Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Right or wrong (and I usually thought he was wrong), he had a strongly articulated point of view. Kasavin was the reviewer I would actually agree with more than anyone else in the business; since he left I've been actually liking some of the other sites better.

    Well, another nail in the coffin.

    Nissl on
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  • FreddyDFreddyD Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    polaris314 wrote: »
    I didn't want to bloat the OP with too much speculation, since we don't know enough about the "why" yet, but if the review did indeed factor into the decision, it certainly does set a really ugly precedent. Who do we trust going forward? Also, I think Jeff will be missed more for his general influence on the site, not just what he wrote. Despite whether or not you agree with his opinions, he does know his stuff for the most part and is always entertaining to watch/listen to.
    If the review had anything to do with their decision I'm never reading a review there again. K&L has always looked like a mediocre game, and I would have been extremely suspicious if they started heaping praise on it after they started running ads for the game.

    FreddyD on
  • brynstarbrynstar Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Nooooooooo. Jeff is my favorite part of Gamespot now that Greg is gone. He will be sorely missed. I hope he gets a job somewhere else soon. :(

    brynstar on
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  • s3rial ones3rial one Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Kami wrote: »
    polaris314 wrote: »
    Also, I think Jeff will be missed more for his general influence on the site, not just what he wrote. Despite whether or not you agree with his opinions, he does know his stuff for the most part and is always entertaining to watch/listen to.

    That's exactly why I'll miss him, he was one of the people that took Gamespot from middle-ground to a "household name" in gaming news.
    You really think so?

    I remember back in the late 90s, when Gamespot started registering planet<everything>.com. Then came the ads, and the crappy content that was primarily just copy and pasted from other sites. Even today, try looking at Gamespot with Noscript installed; they're running scripts off seven different domains, most of them advertising-related. They've got interstitial ads and banner ads and paid subscriptions. They got into the business of reviewing games at a good time, and got a head start on everyone else, which gave them the access to pre-release games (read: earlier reviews).

    Maybe I'm a touch cynical, but it seems to me that the only reason GameSpot is any more notorious than the rest of the review sites out there is their money. They're an advertising company that reviews games.

    EDIT: Nevermind, now I'm getting Gamespy (IGN) and Gamespot mixed up. Ugh. They're all in the same boat, as far as I can see, though.

    s3rial one on
  • CouscousCouscous Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Planeteverything was a Gamespy thing, wasn't it?

    Couscous on
  • polaris314polaris314 Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    s3rial one wrote: »
    Kami wrote: »
    polaris314 wrote: »
    Also, I think Jeff will be missed more for his general influence on the site, not just what he wrote. Despite whether or not you agree with his opinions, he does know his stuff for the most part and is always entertaining to watch/listen to.

    That's exactly why I'll miss him, he was one of the people that took Gamespot from middle-ground to a "household name" in gaming news.
    You really think so?

    I remember back in the late 90s, when Gamespot started registering planet<everything>.com. Then came the ads, and the crappy content that was primarily just copy and pasted from other sites. Even today, try looking at Gamespot with Noscript installed; they're running scripts off seven different domains, most of them advertising-related. They've got interstitial ads and banner ads and paid subscriptions. They got into the business of reviewing games at a good time, and got a head start on everyone else, which gave them the access to pre-release games (read: earlier reviews).

    Maybe I'm a touch cynical, but it seems to me that the only reason GameSpot is any more notorious than the rest of the review sites out there is their money. They're an advertising company that reviews games.

    I could be wrong, but I thought planetwhatever.com was a Gamespy/IGN thing.

    polaris314 on
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  • KamiKami Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Yeah, planet____ was Gamespy.

    I miss PlanetQuake, during my mapping days. :cry:

    Kami on
  • galenbladegalenblade Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    This is really a shame. Gerstmann was one of the few reviewers I knew by name, if only for his Twilight Princess review.

    I mean, when TP came out, it was getting glowing reviews left and right and Gerstmann was one of the only people to look past the hype and criticize it accurately. He gave the game the review it earned, not the one it hyped.

    And before I'm accused of being partisan or whatnot, I'm saying this with a Triforce tattooed on my arm.

    galenblade on
    linksig.jpg
  • shrykeshryke Member of the Beast Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    galenblade wrote: »
    And before I'm accused of being partisan or whatnot, I'm saying this with a Triforce tattooed on my arm.

    Loser.

    shryke on
  • brynstarbrynstar Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    galenblade wrote: »
    This is really a shame. Gerstmann was one of the few reviewers I knew by name, if only for his Twilight Princess review.

    I mean, when TP came out, it was getting glowing reviews left and right and Gerstmann was one of the only people to look past the hype and criticize it accurately. He gave the game the review it earned, not the one it hyped.

    And before I'm accused of being partisan or whatnot, I'm saying this with a Triforce tattooed on my arm.

    Bingo. Jeff was the man keeping that site credible for solid opinions on games. He is also freaking hilarious and knowledgeable. This is a punch in the gut for me.

    brynstar on
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  • toxk_02toxk_02 Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Hot damn he didn't hold anything back:

    http://www.gamespot.com/pages/video_player/popup.php?sid=6182850&pid=934403

    Opening line -
    Kane & Lynch is an ugly ugly game.

    toxk_02 on
    OTP.jpg
  • Shoegaze99Shoegaze99 Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Damn, wow.

    I don't frequent the website, but I do listen to the podcast religiously, and I liked the hell out of him. Very funny, insightful guy who seemed to really love games and gaming.

    If he really was fired for giving a mediocre review to a game for which a ton of advertising money was spent, well, fark the powers that be, because that's way unethical and tells me plenty about the priorities over there. It also tells me that reviewers there will be trembling in their boots from this point forward.

    Shoegaze99 on
  • ZenitramZenitram Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    galenblade wrote: »
    This is really a shame. Gerstmann was one of the few reviewers I knew by name, if only for his Twilight Princess review.

    I mean, when TP came out, it was getting glowing reviews left and right and Gerstmann was one of the only people to look past the hype and criticize it accurately. He gave the game the review it earned, not the one it hyped.

    And before I'm accused of being partisan or whatnot, I'm saying this with a Triforce tattooed on my arm.

    Having a triforce tattoo does not give ones opinions more weight.

    As for Gamespot, I hold them in the same regard as IGN (ad/money whores). Except where IGN is known for a 7 to 10 review scale, Gamespot is known for 6 to 8.9)

    Zenitram on
  • HevachHevach Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Wow. This sets something of a scary precedent, does it not?

    I mean, if review websites are willing to fire a person whom they pay specifically to inform their readership of a game's true merits, flaws and overall presentation because his review rated a game they were heavily advertising as 'fair' (6/10) and not 'better than fair" (6.01+/10) then what is to say what truly governs the reviews being posted? Advertising dollars are an important part of website funding, but at what point do you let the people renting your ad-space decide who stays and who goes?

    It's not really a scary precedent. Maybe the fact that a recognizable name is getting fired for it is a precedent, but it isn't really anything new to cater to advertisers. Negative reviews have been known to magically turn into positive reviews overnight without much explanation.

    20050513h.jpg
    (Yes, I know, different site, but just illustrating the point)

    Hevach on
  • BTPBTP Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Shit hits fans worldwide! Gamespot Mod posted this:
    People, don't direct your anger at Gamespot. This is CNet's meddling. Gamespot consists just of the editorial, news, community, and development teams. It's CNet's marketing that puts the ads up. CNet's marketing that complained. CNet is who can fire their EIC.

    BTP on
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  • galenbladegalenblade Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    Zenitram wrote: »
    galenblade wrote: »
    This is really a shame. Gerstmann was one of the few reviewers I knew by name, if only for his Twilight Princess review.

    I mean, when TP came out, it was getting glowing reviews left and right and Gerstmann was one of the only people to look past the hype and criticize it accurately. He gave the game the review it earned, not the one it hyped.

    And before I'm accused of being partisan or whatnot, I'm saying this with a Triforce tattooed on my arm.

    Having a triforce tattoo does not give ones opinions more weight.

    Nor should it. You misread me. I meant to imply that I did not admire him for knocking down a hyped game, as was the cause of this incident. Nor did I mean to say that I thought he took sides. I meant to imply that he gave incredibly accurate reviews. I was just glib about it.
    shryke wrote: »
    Loser.

    Also this.

    galenblade on
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  • BasticleBasticle Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    toxk_02 wrote: »
    Hot damn he didn't hold anything back:

    http://www.gamespot.com/pages/video_player/popup.php?sid=6182850&pid=934403

    Opening line -
    Kane & Lynch is an ugly ugly game.

    Since I made the only K&L thread around here and seem to be the only one that really cared all that much about it I supose I might have a biased opinion but I agree with everything he said in that video. I still think its a very fun game though.

    Basticle on
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  • ZenitramZenitram Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    So basically the Gamespot mod just let everyone know who was to blame, without actually blaming them.

    :thumbsup:

    edit: galenblade: what I'm trying to say is you calling Zelda an 8.8 is just as wrong as me calling it 3.0. Different strokes and all that :) Enough about that though, more Gamespot drama!

    Zenitram on
  • AoiAoi Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    BTP wrote: »
    Shit hits fans worldwide! Gamespot Mod posted this:
    People, don't direct your anger at Gamespot. This is CNet's meddling. Gamespot consists just of the editorial, news, community, and development teams. It's CNet's marketing that puts the ads up. CNet's marketing that complained. CNet is who can fire their EIC.

    Ahhh, the wonderful corporate practice of buck passing. It does the heart good to see old traditions carried out in today's businesses.

    Aoi on
  • Shoegaze99Shoegaze99 Registered User regular
    edited November 2007
    I work in media on the editorial end, and my salary comes from advertising dollars. On at least a handful of occassions, we've had advertisers complain about and try to control our content. And on those occassions, those clients -- and sometimes their sales reps, who work for US (and get commission on sales) -- have tried to get me fired.

    Thankfully, we have an owner with integrity, else I would have been out of there long ago.

    Shoegaze99 on
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