Calling the ethics or motives of any journalist into question, is one sure fire way to really make them angry.
So when Michael Arrington, (editor of one of the largest technology blogs on the Internet, TechCrunch) implies that Leo Laporte (the head of one of the biggest technology podcast networks, This Week in Tech) has a tainted opinion of the newly released Palm Pre because it was a seven-day review unit and not one he'd purchased... sparks are sure to fly.
Caught on live stream while recording Gillmor Gang, Arrington did exactly that, and Laporte let him have it, calling him "the most trollish person I've ever worked with." However, this was after he called him and said a few other things we've decided not to directly repeat here.
After the blow up, Laporte announced he would remove the Gillmor Gang, the cast that was being recorded at the time which Arrington is a frequent contributor to, from the Twit network. He then cut off the current recording and walked out.
Warning, the following video contains language that may not be suitable for all audiences.
Afterwards, in a posting on TechCrunch, Arrington says that he was upset with Palm for not sending TechCrunch a review unit, which he claims is due to the bad press his site had given the device. His feelings leading into the blow up, was that Palm was only giving review units to people who they thought would give favorable reviews. He also explains how he considers the fact that Leporte received the device for free, even though Laporte is expected to return the device, to be a conflict of interest. As he says in the posting, "as long as Palm sends out a letter with the device asking for it back in a week, it isn't considered a financial conflict of interest. The fact that few people ever return them is rarely brought up."
Laporte apologized in the TechCrunch comments saying "Now that I know what was going on in your mind, I apologize to you. ... I'm embarrassed by my overreaction."
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