In the early part of the film “The Patriot” (starring Mel Gibson), we are presented with an absolute idyl of country life brutally destroyed by mindless monstrosity. This extreme contrast between good and evil invariably makes anybody watching the movie gasp in horror. Which makes for no good cinema but a cynical exploitation of movie-goers’ emotions.
The recent post of Matt Cutts on paid reviews reeks of this method of emotional manipulation.
His example to make a point is intentionally heart-wrenching and serious: a relative with a brain tumor. Then he creates an extreme contrast by setting this life-or-death issue against the poorest and most pathetic of paid reviews he could find on the net.
And then he asks the rhetorical question: “would you prefer that radiosurgery overview article from the Mayo Clinic, or from a site which appears to be promoting a specific manufacturer of medical equipment via paid posts?”
I wonder how such demagoguery could actually lower Matt Cutts’ standing as a well respected voice in the search arena.
In fact, his wife might have been right in questioning him about staying with Google beyond the originally planned time span.
Were he to leave now, he would mostly be remembered as the face of Google at a time when altogether we still loved Google. If he stays too long, he risks going down with this ship. Not necessarily financially, but in reputational terms, definitely.
Tags: demagoguery, Matt Cutts, paid links, paid reviews
