Facebook admits Google smear campaign
May 13th, 2011 - 6:23 pm ICT by IANS
New York, May 13 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Social networking giant Facebook has admitted it hired a public relations agency to encourage investigations into rival Google’s operations, Facebook’s press service said Friday.
American media reported that PR agency Burson-Marsteller had tried to persuade bloggers and journalists “to investigate” Google’s work and the way it obtains information about Facebook users and other similar services.
Facebook denied waging an anti-Google campaign, and said it merely wanted to find out public opinion and attract attention to the issue through open information sources. The company, however, admitted it should have been less secretive about its plans.
Burson-Marsteller acknowledged the deal with Facebook and said it had made a mistake.
Google said all the information it used was within public access on the friends-of-friends option. This function is available on many social network services, including Facebook.
–IANS/RIA Novosti
pm/vm
- Facebook files for $5 bn IPO - Feb 02, 2012
- Russian lawmaker held for $1.3 mn scam - Apr 29, 2012
- French troops to stay in Afghanistan after 2014 - Jan 01, 2012
- Man vandalises Siberian nursery school - Apr 09, 2012
- Karzai opens Facebook, Twitter accounts - Nov 25, 2011
- Apple beats Google in 'war of global brands' - May 09, 2011
- Russia expects more tourists from India, China - Aug 24, 2011
- Two Russian women killed by hurricane - Jan 28, 2012
- Cop, two militants killed in Russia - Mar 18, 2012
- Russian carrier cancels flights to New York - Aug 27, 2011
- Russian burns self to death over disability certificate - Apr 16, 2011
- Russian woman found living with husband's body - Mar 11, 2012
- 28 detained in Moscow after unsanctioned rally - Jun 13, 2011
- Mubarak's information minister jailed - Sep 28, 2011
- Russian president gains 1 mn online fans in 24 hours - Nov 11, 2011
Tags: bloggers, burson marsteller, facebook, google, information sources, investigations, journalists, mistake, networking giant, pr agency, public access, public opinion, public relations agency, ria novosti, similar services, smear campaign, social networking, vm