Broad:
I wrote a fair amount of "tough prose" about accounting legerdemain in my former newsletter, "The Tech Review". My targets included some of the largest companies in N. America, including IBM and MSFT. Inevitably several things happened after the release of an issue containing such criticisms.
- Company execs or their lawyers would immediately call me, harangue me about the "inaccuracy" of my interpretation of their numbers and ALWAYS threaten to sue if I did not immediately retract or recant.
- Brokers and/or unhappy investors called to threaten a variety of retaliatory actions. I frequently heard, "You are costing us a lot of money with your crummy comments". Some of the threats were more than serious.
The threat of suit always caused me to sweat. Yes, I never committed to print anything that I couldn't prove, and yes, some bravado on my part usually kept the piranhas at bay ("Stop the BS..... you are not going to make a hero out of me by taking this into the courts where even more nasty facts would come out", or "Cut the cr*p.... we both know that the information I provided is right out of your own 10-Qs"), but a suit can drain one of meagre resources very quickly and the large companies know this. They also know that the threat of suit usually causes the criticism to evaporate quickly.
I stood up to this crud for quite some time, but it eventually grinds you down, primarily through the impact it has on your family. With few exceptions (the New York Times being one of those exceptions), the mainstream press exhibited zero interest in these situations, even when fraud was blatantly apparent and fully provable.
I would point out to all on the thread that guys like Fleck, Tice, and in particular Fred Hickey, continue to handle this stuff on a weekly basis. They are very brave men and I respect their courage immensely for continuing to provide the truth, in spite of the many adversities.
Best, Earlie |
