Casual observation: Phil Harrison poking the press

by Alexander Sliwinski { Mar 2nd 2007 at 8:15PM }

The pressure of keeping up with all the spin might finally be getting to Sony and their executives. Yesterday's spectacular lapse in judgment by Dave Karakker against Kotaku, which was condemned across the internet, came as Sony's Phil Harrison has been on an awkward press poking bender of his own.

Simon Carless of Gamasutra was the first to experience the Harrison press attack, he was called out for quoting improperly. Carless puts up a strong defense and un-spins Harrison's allegations. Next on the chopping block was MTV News' Stephen Totilo, who also went on to defend his work. This all comes after last week's Game Head where Harrison made comments toward Geoff Keighley about negative things said in the press. Timing wise, the Harrison incidents all happened at the exact same time. The Carless and Totilo quotes both come from an N'Gai Croal piece, which was conducted at the D.I.C.E. Summit. The Keighley interview also occurred at the same convention. So, although these incidents are playing out over time, maybe Harrison was just having a bad time at the slots in Vegas. Well, we'll certainly get a better sense of Sony and their views on the press next week at the Game Developers Conference.

Tags: dave karrakar, duck in a row, phil harrison, playstation, sony

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

and I couldnt save my game @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:18PM

*shrugs*
Gotta poke someone.

Jeff @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:30PM

Is it just me or is the blogosphere on some meta-reporting kick about their coverage of Sony lately?

Honestly, can we get back to reporting the news about games and game systems, rather than on this and other blogs' coverage of those games and systems? I don't read a gaming blog for coverage of gaming blogs and PR departments at the manufacturers; I read it for coverage of games.

required @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:33PM

The Kotaku matter was praised across the internet too.

Feanor @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:39PM

Yawn, Joystiq's at it again.

Mr BoomStick XL @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:44PM

Let's call it like we see it, Sony's PR Nightmare continues and will ultimately cause the downfall of the last gen console king!! I say fire this jerk and put someone who knows what they are doing!!

required @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:47PM

Mr BoomStick XL,

Please note that only folks like yourself see Sony's PR as a "nightmare".

why not the LS2/LS7? @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:49PM

I'm with you Jeff.

There's news about games. That affects my game experience directly. There's then news about what execs of gaming said today. This affects my gaming experience very little. Lately, the gaming blogs just talk about gaming blogs. This effects my gaming experience not at all.

Please try to report on stuff that actually shows up in the games I play and buy and less on the meta-gaming news and meta-meta-gaming news.

...at least until someone releases "game console tycoon".

Vince UK @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:53PM

Kotaku looked like a right mickey mouse outfit yesterday, and the day before that come to think of it.

James Smith @ Mar 2nd 2007 8:57PM

Me personally I find a game hardware/software company trying to manipulate the gaming press very important.

MosquitoControl @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:02PM

Required, need we go through it again?

Sony has ABSOLUTELY had a PR nightmare. From coverage on Time and The New York Times, two of the most respected media publications, questioning their PS3 decisions, to the Kotaku misfire at the very least spreading the veracity of a rumor that would have otherwise been ignored, to closing down grey-area importers which they may have been justified in doing but pissed off their fanbase, to all of their marketing gaffes:

PSP graffiti pissing off cities and city-dwellers.
PSP color analogies pissing off various races.
PSP squirrels pissing off various races.
AllIWantForChristmasIsMyPSP pissing off anyone with a brain.
Creepy babies confusing people.
Cup stacking making no sense.
CGI Motorstorm not really looking like real Motorstorm.
CGI Killzone 2 being presented as actual, 100% real gameplay.
Mocking Microsoft for software-based backwards compatibility.
Mocking Microsoft for two SKUs.

Say what you want, say what you will, but Sony has been tripping all over themselves in the past two years. Does it make the PS3 a bad product? No. Does it make Sony seem like untrustworthy, confused liars? Yes. Is it damaging their brand name? Yes. Is it damaging PS3 sales? Yes. Is it a fabrication of the media? No. Is it being enhanced by the media? Yes. Is it because the media is evil? No. Is it because it's really funny to see the guy on top convinced that he's cool and awesome and people will believe everything he says and hang off every word crash and burn funny? Yes.

Sony is pretty much the Britney Spears of gaming companies right now. They keep digging themselves in holes, the media keeps making it worse by letting everyone know. But Sony is digging their holes not in front of the media but to the media. It's like they look at the leniency Apple gets with their exaggerations and hyperbole and think they should be allowed to get away with the same thing without realizing that Apple has delivered their promises within reason of the hyperbole. Meanwhile everyone is still waiting for the Emotion Engine to give us Toy Story 2 graphics. And we'd be willing to forget this if they didn't keep telling us Killzone 2 was actual gameplay footage.

Don't doubt it, that was the breaking point. Sony's massive, enormous, gigantic lie over Killzone 2 killed their credibility. It's caused people to second guess everything they say and put everything under a close microscope. And it's made Sony somewhat neurotic. Just a downward spiral. Microsoft and Nintendo do dumb things to, say dumb things. But they've never been caught in a huge, massive, gigantic lie, so we'll make a joke and forget.

Sony has been caught lying.

carg0 @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:04PM

Sony obviously deserves to be on that hate list but now more than ever after yesterday.

A lot of us couldn't believe let alone understand how Sony could self destruct the way they've been but yesterday's leaked announcements really opened my eyes. They really never had a clue as to how to enter the next-gen console race. It's as simple as that.

The first signs occured with their open declarations (or bitching) towards Msoft about releasing the 360 too soon. This however could have been half truth, half smoke-screen because it allowed them time to simply observe and copy the revolutionary aspects of the 360 (Live Arcade, Marketplace, Achievements, the Guide button on the controllers).

Then there was Nintendo who frustrated everyone with there cloak and dagger operations concerning their plans for the Wii. They revealed nothing until the very last second possible because they too were afraid of competitors copying their radically different designs.

And when the ps3 launched, what did it have out of the box? A wireless, tilt-sensitive controller with a guide button. A pathetic attempt at creating an online community with their "playstation network", which Msoft generously warned would take years to properly implement to rival their's. Oh and absolutely no games worth mentioning, which also probably hurt. All compouned by their continued dellusional statements to painfully obvious contraries.

Now comes news of customizable avatars (Mii's) and receiving items (achievements) that will be displayed in some 'virtual home' ? Yea, I can see why Sony got pissed off at Kotaku. It's practically theft to the letter for pete's sake and they knew everyone would call them on it. They really believed they could just coast on the ps2's success and that consumers would just buy a ps3 because 'it was, therefore we buy'.

And that's why the animosity continues towards Sony. The majority have told them the ps3 is shit and their response has been that of denial and indifference.

Vince UK @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:08PM

Yeah, Sony trying to suppress good news is very important.
In fact, a week of nothing but great news for the PS3 has been muffled by an onslaught of counter crap.

Diman @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:10PM

Fanboys at it again. All 3 have their fucked up moments, I can't say journalist aren't putting negative spin on thing, its poor journalism and fanboys that are tearing gaming communities apart. I believe when we buy a console, we buy it for its games, not for the people behind it.

Jimmuy Bay @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:17PM

A toast to Jeff's comments! Let all the others argue for the sake of arguing or from boredom. To gaming!

-Jim Bay

Pal @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:16PM

Games were better when I didn't know who made them. I just cared about how many minutes I had left before bedtime.

MosquitoControl @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:22PM

The politics of business and poorly managed companies are far more interesting than video games.

Video games just have their gaffes far more public than other markets. You'd think they'd be more aware of this and take more care.

Azorean @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:24PM

I found the cure to all of Sony's PR woe's.......SHUT THE FUCK UP SONY!!!

Jimmuy Bay @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:27PM

16

You;re just a corporate product then.. to you games are secondary to the corporate image. What happened to Sonic vs Mario?

KC @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:36PM

14. Games were better when I didn't know who made them. I just cared about how many minutes I had left before bedtime.

That is the quote of the year for many, many gamers.

Petey @ Mar 2nd 2007 9:46PM

Gotta laugh when you read "Joystiq at it again"... rather Sony at it again!!!
@ required... only fanbots like YOU deny the evident PR nightmare... when you're a gamer you want to be informed about the gaming scene, hardware, games coming, features etc... when people like Sony, lie, steal, spin, blackmail, mock with all their arrogance, it's pretty natural to witness backfire!!! Sony should be shifting their business focus with all this backfire, they should organise barbecue parties, they even have their own PS3 grill!!!

mushiking @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:11PM

that's funny, cause pretty much every gamer/journalist agrees that PSN Home is best Sony has presented so far.

is it a ripoff of Live ? damn right it is... and you don't you have to pay 50 dollars a year for it.

ghnvt @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:25PM

Sometimes I actually feel sorry for Sony...Wait what am I saying...I think the dominance Sony has had for so long is over. They keep shooting themselves in the ass and I hope they go down in flames.

soul4sale @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:48PM

"Games were better when I didn't know who made them. I just cared about how many minutes I had left before bedtime."

Thanks for that bumper stick wisdom, nostalgia whore. Go back in your hole, read GamePro and hang out at ThreeSpeech.

It's March. There's not a goddamn thing going on in gaming nooz right now. There won't be until the summer, when the fall product rush begins.

oldschoolgamer @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:53PM

@21.

Yeah you don't have to pay $50 a year for Sony's network. You just have to pay about $200 to $300 more at once for a dvd player on steroids that happens to play games sometimes and which is not even optimized for videogames.
Oh and that "not paying $50 a year" might change later on. Unlike MS Sony doesn't maintain their own gaming servers or networks so its only a matter of time before 3rd party companies begin to charge a World of Warcraft type fee just to play ps3 games on their servers. Just think about it. Do you really think that if a money-hungry company like EA were left to maintain their own servers for madden 2091 or battlefield 26 that they wouldn't try to cash in on it somehow?

NintendoFanbot @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:56PM

"is it a ripoff of Live ? damn right it is... and you don't you have to pay 50 dollars a year for it."

That's right, you pay ***$200*** more than the cost of 360 Premium or $150 if you count XBL.

I think the best advice for Sony right now is roll with the punches, even when blatently creating their own vulnerabilities.

"Fanboys at it again. All 3 have their fucked up moments, I can't say journalist aren't putting negative spin on thing, its poor journalism and fanboys that are tearing gaming communities apart. I believe when we buy a console, we buy it for its games, not for the people behind it."

I'd love to own a Wii while leaving Sony alone, but they've got hide their own jerk fanboy attitudes. Among fans, fanboyism should be okay, but among professionals, it shouldn't be acceptable if used negatively.

I don't need paid PR to say my $250 preference is gimmicky garbage. That's bullshit no one should have to put up with.

Ironhide @ Mar 2nd 2007 10:58PM

#21

Just exactly how long do you honestly think it will be before Sony starts charging for minor things, like adding online play for a racing game, followed by body damage for car models if you want it 'realistic'? Sony's losing the bank on the ps3. And now you expect a completely free service? Again, you get entirely what you pay for. No combined friends list, letting the developers take up the slack that Sony has left in the wake of thier open online service, and on top of that, just a poor, poor copy of both Wii and Xbox Live.

Just like the ever innovating Sony always does. Takes everyone's ideas and turns them around into thier own. Lets face it. Sony actually made a mark with the original PS1 by making it 'cool' to own one. So far after that improvement, it's been careful carbon copying one feature after another.

But to call it innovative? More like Wiistation Live.

eagleclaw @ Mar 2nd 2007 11:02PM

Phil Harrison's keynote speech at GDC will go a little like this. Lie-lie-steal-steal-copy-copy. Next up will be Miyamoto's keynote wich will be out of this world as always.

Mr Khan @ Mar 2nd 2007 11:17PM

As i said over at PS3 fanboy, this whole PlayStation Home thing could work out very well, even if it sounds like a "me too" mashup

It all depends on the execution

Remember, everybody votes channel looked like idiocy on paper, but in reality, all those statistics they run are pretty cool (like apparently, people in Puerto Rico brush their teeth before breakfast, whereas everyone else in the US does so after)

Its all about execution

Poisoned Al @ Mar 2nd 2007 11:25PM

I won't repeat what hasn't been said before, but also remember that Sony doesn't just make games consoles. Indeed, Sony are making a tit of themselves in other areas too. They make crap movies and crap music (with virus DRM root-kits on their CDs) too! All this was well an good until E3 and "that" press confrance. Sony was being annoying before, but after E3 it was open season on Sony for the press. Is it unfair? Maybe a little, but if you're at the top people are going to constantly watch your every move. Therefore it's not a good idea to blatantly lie and act like arrogant douche-bags. ALL of the players here have got to the top and ten have had the chair kicked from under them. Remember that Saga got all those developers on side for the Mega-Drive because they where sick of Nintendo's bullying. Saga blew their own toes off shortly afterwards, but if it wasn't for the Game Boy I don't think Nintendo would still be here. Atari treated their staff like shit and paid the price, Microsoft has a heavily tarnished name for being a bully and making crap so why is everyone so surprised when it's Sony's turn to take a bite of the shit sandwich? It'll pass I'm sure, and maybe Sony will learn, just like the others before them, that you can't just assume that you're invincible because you're on top. Hell, at the top, you have the farthest to fall!

mushiking @ Mar 2nd 2007 11:51PM

"27. Phil Harrison's keynote speech at GDC will go a little like this. Lie-lie-steal-steal-copy-copy. Next up will be Miyamoto's keynote wich will be out of this world as always."

yeah, especially with that muzzle on him, keeping him from talking about Nintendo's projects... oops! Joystiq didn't report that, did they?

oh and i agree al, Spiderman 3 will be be the biggest box office bomb EVER!

LR @ Mar 3rd 2007 12:16AM

Sony has to stop talking to the press. I feel like a broken record, saying this over and over again. They need to regroup, create a new plan, and present a united front through their a newly hired PR group.

If you're a Sony executive, think before you speak. Better yet, limit who can speak to the media.

I don't blame Joystiq for reporting these stories. I don't blame Kotaku. Sony is the reason why these stories are appearing. They continue to put their foot in their mouth interview after interview. It's bad PR and I thought Sony would have learned from their mistakes by now.

STOP STOP STOP talking to the press.

Sony has become their own worst enemy.

Once they figure this out, then they need to rebuild relationships. It's the press, the media, blogs, the internet, which drives customers to their products. Sony needs to generate positive buzz. And if things don't go as planed, roll with it, and use it to your advantage.

NoHitHair @ Mar 3rd 2007 5:50AM

You idiots that demand Joystiq only report on games exclusively are simultaneously ignorant and extremely shortsighted.

Games do not exist in some segregational bubble separate from that of the industry - they are entirely intertwined. If Sony is choosing to fleece customers and lie to the public, how can anyone possibly stand behind them? Are you actually insinuating that we should simply ignore EA's historical treatment of its developers? Who the hell else do we have to blame besides ourselves if we're not even willing to support the company that makes our favorite games?

I sent a letter to Working Designs once many years ago praising a game they made. I was sent back a handwritten letter of thanks signed by several members of the localization team, signed posters and a wall scroll. I wrote Tim Schafer following the release of Psychonauts thanking him for proving innovation wasn't dead - he wrote me back a handwritten thank you letter (albeit in weird silver pen on black construction paper) with a free copy of the game (apparantly to give to a friend), Psychonauts patches, posters and a soundtrack. Even Nintendo called me out of the blue to make sure my NES was running smoothly after I ordered a replacement part days before. Do you honestly think Microsoft would ever even consider doing any of the above?

We absolutely need to appreciate those who do us right and chastise those who would not. It's this "focus on the product" garbage that's ironically shaped the mess we're in now.

Sony would revel in us ignoring their public relations. That's exactly what they've been counting on when they're threatening Lik-Sang or working with Immersion on rumble technology when only days before discrediting it as antiquated.

Open your fucking eyes.

http://blog.myspace.com/nohithair

mike @ Mar 3rd 2007 5:56AM

At the current rate of sales sony will sell 1.5m PS3's in japan this year, they must be shitting themselves at the spectatular underwelming response to their new hardware in their home teritory (the PS2 sold 1m in it first month by the way)

samfish @ Mar 3rd 2007 7:09AM

#32 is exactly right.
What do you guys want who keep complaining that sites should "Focus on games"? I mean, literally, WHAT do you want to see? A bunch of reviews?
We already hear about it whenever someone sends out screen shots or gives an update on a game's progress.
There are sites that cover every SINGLE little game that comes out, like GoNintendo, for example, but no one comments on a lot of those stories, thus suggesting a lack of interest.

Anyway, I've said it before: Sony is just like the Republican party. Blah blah blah. I'm not gonna go into it again.

John @ Mar 3rd 2007 9:53AM

Kotaku has always been a joke. I remember when they were spewing disinformation and you couldn't respond, because you had to be accepted into their club. They were the ones "proving" that the ps3 wouldn't be able to output in 1080p (among other ridiculous assertions). They're basically a front for disinformation. You know, like Pravda.

nick @ Mar 3rd 2007 10:06AM

So as far a gaming blogs go, Sony would be hurting themselves by cutting off a popular site.

And it doesn't matter that this happened to Kotaku. It could have just as easily be Destructoid. Point is, Sony has no right to tell a blog they cannot publish a rumor, and if they do, they are doing themselves no favors by publically saying any such blog is cut off from Sony.

Fatass of Kickassness @ Mar 3rd 2007 10:19AM

The reason I like articles like this are because the comment section discussions are out of this world. They show who's smart and who's not and often can change your opinion on a lot of matters.

erac3rx @ Mar 3rd 2007 11:03AM

I, like #37, rather enjoy reading and participating in the comments on these threads. The constant talk of Sony lying, Sony needs to quit talking to the press, etc.. etc.. what are we all doing? Talking about Sony. Sure a lot of it's bad, but one thing that we certainly are NOT talking about 360. Not about how great the games are, about how the Halo3 beta should be really good...

Think about that from a PR standpoint. All everyone does is talk about Sony's ads, Sony's statements, Sony's lies... meanwhile it is all garnering attention for them on a CONSTANT, day to day basis on virtually every gaming site on the net. That's what PR is supposed to do, get attention. Do you think people will be constantly refreshing their browsers next week waiting to hear what Phil actually said re: upscaling, re: Sony Playstation Home? Of course they will.

Trust me, they're not doing a bad job. All the time we are talking about Sony is time we are not spending speaking on 360 and it's excellent lineup of games that are _currently_ available-- save the regrettable fanboy 'OMG PS3 sucks 360 FTW' which doesn't convince anyone of anything.

Think about it-- over this past week we've heard about rumble coming back, a nice new achievement system, dvd upscaling, GT coming this year, and an update on MGS4. What have we heard about 360? What have we been talking about re: 360? Nothing.

Aberu @ Mar 3rd 2007 11:16AM

The only dangerous thing about this is usually the video game press was just kinda chill if someone got mad at them. They had a no prob approach to it, which is a positive thing. When the video game press starts complaining about being talked to sternly by a company, and then starts to rebel, all of us readers suffer. This issue doesn't really matter to most of us personally, just the anti-sony people care. Sucking up to the press is what lawyers and politicians have to do, because the press have too much power in those situations. I don't want video games to turn out the same way.

MosquitoControl @ Mar 3rd 2007 11:42AM

#38 - we may not be talking about the 360, but if you read the poll from earlier yesterday you'll see that we certainly seem to be playing it.

If you think delusional people lying and criticizing the media can lead to "all exposure is good exposure" just ask Michael Jackson or Britney Spears.
Their constant goofs, gaffes, misplays, and lashings at the media have driven them to both be spectacle. No one wants their products. No one respects them. People just like watching them burn.
Has this attention helped their careers? Michael Jackson has lost an enormous chunk of his wealth. Britney Spears is probably going to lose her children.

MosquitoControl @ Mar 3rd 2007 11:46AM

Also #38, you discuss the good things we've discussed this weekend.
But consider how much attention that's lose due to Sony's PR going beserk. What got more attention - DVD upscaling or Kotaku getting blackballed? I never heard about GT coming soon, but I heard Phil Harrison claim his previous truth-distortions were just "misquotes," bringing more attention back to him mocking Microsoft for having two SKUs. Sony might be getting rumble, true, but has anyone paid attention to that or are they too busy seeing Sony quickly respond to the negative reaction and take Kotaku back into the fold?

Yes, it's overshadowing Microsoft and Nintendo. But it's also overshadowing Sony itself. It's hard for the few competent marketers to make people care about anything coming from their company when the higher-ups steal the spotlight in very negative ways.

apoc06 @ Mar 3rd 2007 12:00PM

@ #38: erac3rx

precisely... sony pr needs to do what it takes to keep all eyes on sony. why on earth, after all of these years of NEVER commenting on rumors, would sony break character and start this huge fiasco? to simply drum up support for the ps3 and hype their GDC announcements.

Petey @ Mar 3rd 2007 12:52PM

@ #38: erac3rx
All this attention is not going to make me buy a PS3 meanwhile!!! A little bit of bad press can be helpful to an unknown product, in order to create awareness of the product in consumer eyes... constant bad press of a well known company that used to be well perceived is not helpful at all, there is such a thing as bad publicity, you have to be a totally stupid to choose a product wich has bad publicity over one that has good publicity.
Furthermore, instead of growing the identity of the product & develop a trend to market the product, they are stuck with countering the bead publicity & even worse now justifying previous lies & afirmation, doing an even worse job at justifying than ever... talk about bad PR!!!