Google’s apparently very, very sorry about Google Health Advertising blogger Lauren Turner’s comments criticizing Michael Moore’s film Sicko – so sorry the company’s PR department put out a statement and resident star blogger Matt Cutts put out a guide to corporate blogging.
All that in addition to Turner’s own recanting. Regardless of what she meant by it, or whether she has a right to say what she wants about Moore’s film (she does, after all, and is entitled), the outrage was palpable this morning.
Google product marketing manager Missy Krasner says she and the rest of Google were surprised by the response, but should have anticipated it. “Our internal review of the piece before publication failed to recognize that readers would — properly, but incorrectly — impute the criticisms as reflecting Google’s official position. We blew it.”
Cutts seemed sympathetic to Turner, offering (though not using her name outright) a ready-reference for corporate blogging, warning against criticism, blogging angry, and hiding after a mistake.
This doesn’t mean the Google blogger is going extinct though.
“I’d rather be communicating a lot and sometimes get scalded than not be blogging,” writes Cutts. “I think Google realizes the importance of communication/blogging and tries hard to get it right. Sometimes Googlers mess up, just like anyone else. But I expect more Google blogging over time, not less.”
Still, it brings out the dangers of transparency and serves as a reminder that anything you say can and will be used against in blog court.
