Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo? - Valleywag Comments

Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo?

terran — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 10:19:34 PST

Fair enough. He's gotten some press. But your coverage of him still reads as overly ad hominem. Slam his performance, but not sure why this guy's character or integrity are at issue - don't see the evidence in your posts. Usually enjoy the skewering people get, one reason I show up. But it's usually about their self-evident professional misdeeds or in some cases literal criminal or civil offenses. This, based upon subjective interpretations of ship dates or PR handling for a company employee on the job six months or something can't help but read as overly personal and hard to justify.

Worse still...it's hard to enjoy, putting a crimp in my daily schadenfreude. Let's step up the targeting, shall we?

terran

Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo?

Owen Thomas — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 11:34:17 PST

@Rick: Brickhouse is a warehouse-loft office in San Francisco, the sort that was trendy 12 years ago. The way Ismail wants to define "Brickhouse," though, is any innovation coming out of Yahoo whatsoever that he can claim credit for.

Owen Thomas

Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo?

Owen Thomas — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 11:32:54 PST

@terran: Ludicrous. We first wrote about Ismail in March, before my arrival. He's a regular on the tech conference circuit, and has now been written up in the Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek. I'll leave the cutting of any slack to Ismail's far-too-indulgent bosses at Yahoo.

Owen Thomas

Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo?

Rick — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 07:56:38 PST

Very good choice, Owen, in indicating what Brickhouse is. I didn't actually know until now, and it sounds yawnable enough that I'm sure I'll forget. It'll probably be a good idea to continue reminding us what it is in the future.

Rick

Can Salim Ismail locate reality at Yahoo?

terran — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 22:21:16 PST

Cut Ismail some slack. Not sure what his supposed crime is, reading through your broadsides. And he's not a public figure, as far as I can tell.

Seems to me this product could easily have been developed in three months. Add testing, vetting, privacy review, etc., you know, readying for rollout.

Let them have it when they deserve it or ask for it (see "Pud"). Scoundrel? Liar? Tool? This smear campaign reads as unjustified and weirdly, creepily personal.

terran