Ethical bankruptcy = financial bankruptcy

"Because Television can make so much money doing its worst, it often cannot afford to do its best."
-Fred Friendly

Substitute the word 'television' with 'internet', and the above quote seems almost prophetic. Those were the words of Fred Friendly, the producer of See It Now, CBS's landmark news show, which was hosted by Friendly's longtime partner, the iconic Edward R. Murrow. As documented in the excellent film, "Good night and good luck", Murrow and Friendly used a series of See It Now shows in 1954 to shed light on the underhanded tactics of Senator Joseph McCarthy who, at the time, was using his political office to persecute innocent citizens under the guise of halting the spread of communism.

While there is little doubt the power of TV played a vital role in those events, it would have been useless without the courage and resolve of Murrow and Friendly. Despite repeated attempts by McCarthy and opposition members of the press to paint them as communist sympathizers and faced with the possible destruction of their careers, they never wavered in their shared belief that they were acting for the public good.

That was fifty years ago, but the lessons are just as relevant today.

For the past several days the internet has been buzzing over the latest example of ethics being sacrificed for profit. Gamespot, a well-respected source of video game news and information, fired their popular editorial director and employee of eleven years, Jeff Gerstmann, allegedly as a result of pressure from game developer Eidos, a large buyer of Gamespot advertising space. Gerstmann had recently reviewed Eidos's latest release, Kane and Lynch: Dead Men, giving it a decidedly negative score of 6 out of 10.

Since you're reading this blog and not living under a rock, you are probably aware of this story and have likely chosen a side by now -- believing either that Gerstmann was unjustly sacrificed on the altar of corporate profits, or that Gamespot and their parent company, CNET Networks, were within their rights to fire an employee who jeopardized an important advertiser relationship, potentially costing the company hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.

To clarify, I'm not comparing the social impact of reviewing a video game to that of preserving the Constitution. I also have no interest in proving or disproving the accuracy of the allegations against Gamespot. The fact is, true or not, this incident is a black eye for the entire business of gaming journalism. I am more interested in where we go from here.

"With great power there must also come - great responsibility."
-Stan Lee

As a medium, the internet is approaching a crossroads. In fact, it may have already barreled through it. As a tool for generating profit, the internet's been around for less than 20 years, but with recent acquisitions of companies like YouTube, MySpace and others commanding prices approaching $1 BILLION, the power of the internet to shape public opinion, create buying trends and influence corporate decision-making, is quickly approaching that of television. But it's still just a tool, and like Friendly and Murrow half a century ago, it is our courage and resolve that will determine the internet's impact on society.

Unlike websites that focus purely on entertainment content, journalistic outlets are tasked with balancing advertiser needs with fair and objective reporting, all the while producing compelling content that will attract and maintain high levels of readership.

Most video game outlets only make money because readers trust us to be unbiased sources of information. They count on us to help them avoid wasting time and money on bad games. If readers believe the opinions of game reviewers are no more than thinly veiled marketing campaigns dictated by game developers, that trust will be lost and those readers will leave en masse, taking all those advertising dollars with them.

As far as I'm concerned, if we betray the trust of our readers just to make an easy buck, then we deserve our inevitable fate...extinction.