Microsoft PR Paying to "Correct" Wikipedia

Unpaid Schill writes "Over on the O'Reilly Network, there's an interesting piece about how Microsoft tried to hire people to contribute to Wikipedia. Not wanting to do the edits directly, they were looking for an intermediary to make edits and corrections favorable to them. Why? According to the article, it was apparently both to let people know that Microsoft will not 'enable death squads with their UUIDs' and also to fight the growing consensus that OOXML contains a useless pile of legacy crap which is unfit for standardization."

Microsoft is better than Linux

[heauxmeaux]

Microsoft has *always* been better than Linux.

Dear Microsoft

[All_One_Mind]

I'm available for hire. Please send me a Ferrari notebook, Office 2007, and a contract to sign away my soul. Did I mention I also blog?

Re:Honesty....

[Scrameustache]

what the hell is the marketing department doing?
Are they *that* ethically challenged?
Or is it that they are *that* desperate to be cool and loved?
How about a policy of honesty

Their job.
Yes.
That's their job.
That would be the anti-thesis of marketing.

My evil brain...

[Anonymous Coward]

...was ticking along one day, and I realized wikipedia is not going anywhere, and that corporate entities are going to want to have a very "respectable" write-up just to maintain image, to play up positives and downplay negatives. And so I envisioned this pitch: "Ensure your wikipedia entry is acceptable and not compromised by rumour and hearsay by subscribing to my service for $29,99 a month. My team of wikipedia nerds will ensure the integrity of your company's entry is maintained to the highest possible manner in accordance with veritable truth. For an extra $50 a month this truth can be considered as flexible as a gymnast."

Re:Isn't this just spam using robots?

[russ1337]

....would extend your Windows license for a few days.

You mean it runs out???

Re:Honesty....

[thelost]

excuse me, did anyone ask you to get in the way of a good ms bashing opportunity?

Re:Honesty....

[slugstone]

Of course, you're welcome to call me an idiot all you like. I majored in Philosophy, I can take it. AND I work primarily in VBScript, meaning I have developed balls of steel from being kicked in them again and again and again.

+1 for ball of steel.

Re:hi, I'm the guy you're bashing today

[Anonymous Coward]

"who can explain the difference between PR and evangelism?"

wait, wait, I know this one... Evangelists? Or was it PR people? Aw shucks, I forget :(