GameSpot posts official Gerstmann firing notice

140 Comments by Kyle Orland Dec 3rd 2007 9:32PM
Filed under: Culture, Hacks

It took nearly four long, controversy-filled days, but GameSpot has finally posted notice on their web site that editorial director Jeff Gerstmann has been fired. Or, as the notice itself puts it, "after over a decade in a variety of editorial roles, Jeff Gerstmann's tenure as editorial director has ended."

Besides praising Gerstmann's work and offering him best wishes, the notice echoes the company's earlier statement by saying that "details of Gerstmann's departure cannot be disclosed publicly" because of "legal constraints and the company policy of GameSpot parent CNET Networks." The posting also firmly denies (yet again) that advertiser pressure had any role in the firing.

"Neither CNET Networks nor GameSpot has ever allowed its advertising business to affect its editorial content," said Greg Brannan, CNET Networks Entertainment's vice president of programming. "The accusations in the media that it has done so are unsubstantiated and untrue. Jeff's departure stemmed from internal reasons unrelated to any buyer of advertising on GameSpot." Strong words, but ones that might come too late for many gamers who have already made up their minds about the controversy.

Oddly enough, Gerstmann does still appear on the site's About Us page, nearly a week after his termination last Wednesday. The notice about the firing currently appears on the front page of the site as the top news story.

Even with the posted statement, many questions remain surrounding the firing. Why was Gerstmann's Kane & Lynch video review removed from the site? Did Eidos (or any other company) bring pressure to bear on Gamespot, even if it was ignored? (Eidos continues to ignore repeated requests for comment from Joystiq). How does Gamespot plan on addressing the sizable outrage in the gaming community over the issue, justified or not? We'll keep looking for answers to these and other questions surrounding the controversy and will of course let you know what we find.

Tags: CNET, controversy, eidos, gamespot, gerstmann, jeff-gerstmann, journalism, kane-and-lynch

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(Page 1) Reader Comments

vgxtremist: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:44PM

Something like this was needed, but the damage has been done. The evidence points to foul play, and we know we won't a true, non-PR statement. Anyway, it was cool to see gamers come together to get answers, yay us.

Todd: Dec 4th 2007; 10:18AM

Answers?

""The accusations in the media that it has done so are unsubstantiated and untrue."

If they want to prove this, rather than just asking the public to believe them on their merits (sure, sure), then they should publicize the reasons for Jeff's firing.

JonFitt: Dec 4th 2007; 4:02PM

"they should publicize the reasons for Jeff's firing."

In grown-up land you can't actually do that.
It wouldn't help anyway, who would believe an "official motive"?

Can someone post a link to a repost of the official statement? I'm still in Blackout Millennia with Gamespot and I wouldn't want to break a 7 year streak just to read it.

Fox318: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:44PM

Look, they can try but they still can't convince me.

When former employees come out and say leave the site. They should have just said

What kind of site locks a man who worked at their company for 10 years and then gives a tribute to him 4 days later.

Oh and you have got to love this quote:
"GameSpot is an institution, and its code of ethics and duty to its users remains unchanged."

So now your saying the Kane and Lynch Review was not alone? Talk about shouting your integrity.

I'm allergic to bullshit.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

Hi! Welcome to the Real World! In this industry, people are lucky to remain with a magazine or major site for more than TWO years.

copa: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:59PM

You're being too hard on them, Fox318. I found their statement to be very straightforward. Read closely:

After over a decade in a variety of editorial roles, Jeff Gerstmann's tenure as editorial director has ended by getting his ass locked out of his office.

"Jeff was a central figure in the creation and evolution of GameSpot, having written hundreds of previews and reviews, and anchoring much of our multimedia content," said Ricardo Torres, editorial director of previews and events. "Which makes it kind of surprising that we locked his ass out of his office."

"The award-winning editorial team he leaves behind wish him nothing but good luck in his future endeavors. Which is why we provided an armed escort to ensure his safety out to the company parking lot."

Contrary to widespread and unproven reports, his exit was not a result of pressure from an advertiser. It was actually pressure from multiple advertisers.

"Neither CNET Networks nor GameSpot has ever allowed its advertising business to affect its editorial content," said Greg Brannan, CNET Networks Entertainment's vice president of programming. "We are looking all over for that video review, and I promise we will post it just as soon as we find it. We are also improving our security procedures to foil those damn hackers that edited our text review. You know, those hackers must really love Eidos."

"Though he will be missed by his colleagues, Jeff's leaving does not affect GameSpot's core mission of delivering the most timely news, video content, in-depth previews, and unbiased reviews in games journalism," said Ryan MacDonald, executive producer of GameSpot Live. "GameSpot is an institution, and its code of ethics and duty to its users remains unchanged. Can I keep my job now?"

Jonathan Tran: Dec 3rd 2007; 11:26PM

copa nominated for post of the year

ssuk: Dec 4th 2007; 9:01AM

I love you copa, can I bare your children?

Booxatron: Dec 4th 2007; 10:16AM

Wow ssuk, he writes a clever comment, and now you want to undress his children? Yikes. =p

TheGuy: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:45PM

Until they put Gerstmann's video review of "Kane and Lynch" back up, I won't believe any denials they make regarding advertising pressure. Also, if both Gamespot and Gerstmann agree to release the confidentiality agreement (and it's sounded to me like Gerstmann is willing to talk), shouldn't they both be able to talk? Even when not looking at the confidentiality agreement, GameSpot's actions haven't done anything but to fuel the fire. Irreversible damage has likely already been done, but if they want to regain some of their credibility they need to take more steps now.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:53PM

Few people actually watch those video reviews. They read the text reviews.

Tiptup300: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:45PM

I always seemed to enjoy watching Jeff's reviews, the other ones always just seemed 'stale.' Plus his opinion rarely wanders too far from my own.

hey alex: Dec 3rd 2007; 11:59PM

First of all, the only thing I liked about GameSpot was the video reviews. Jeff's in particular, were always funny.

I also liked watching On The Spot every week on Thursday nights, and caught Button Mashing every once in a while. Sorry, but I was more interested in the video content than any text content. I knew I could count on GameSpot for high quality video as well.

But as far as any side talking about the matter, I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. GameSpot doesn't want to get sued by Jeff. And I'm sure Jeff doesn't want to get sued by GameSpot. Something happened. It think we got an idea of what happened. But we'll never know everything.

I'm a little disappointed that GameSpot took so long to acknowledge the situation. They should have made a statement right away. Why did it take so long? Were they not prepared to fire him? Was it a spur of the moment decision? (These are rhetorical btw... I don't expect an answer)

I think GameSpot made a colossal mistake in the way Jeff was let go and I think they're going to have a tough time recovering. People don't forget these kinds of thing-- or at least I won't. GameSpot's credibility is shot as far as I'm concerned. The only way I can see myself returning to GameSpot is an acknowledgement they handled the situation poorly and installation of a new management team to 'clean things up'

gonk: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:46PM

and why did they let him post his kane and lynch review if it wasn't kosher

and why did they wait to fire him for about 2 weeks if it was for a good reason

bah

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:52PM

They kept the written review, right? Maybe they didn't want his face on the site anymore. (smirk) Maybe he was masturbating under the desk during the review and THAT'S why he was fired.

Fox318: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:53PM

They edited his original review.

gonk: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

yeah, people have said it's a lot kinder to eidos

playwhutyalike (toast is done): Dec 3rd 2007; 9:46PM

I call shenanigans.

Lemmiwinks: Dec 4th 2007; 1:06PM

Everybody grab a broom!

le screech!: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:50PM

it's too late now, Gamespot, CNET, and Eidos are dead to me. There are too many other credible gaming review blogs out there, why waste a second on corporate shills. If this is a sign of where Gamespot wants to go, if they want to cater to a dumber audience then F them, gamers have choices. Goodbye cashwh0re, it's game over.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:51PM

Yeah, sure. Fans said that after the 1995 baseball strike, and came running back when the Steroid Brigade smacked a ton of homers.

Fox318: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

Fans also said that after the hockey strike and nhl has suffer considerably.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:59PM

The NHL was suffering long before the strike. The expansion influenced by Gretzky, and the migration south of teams out of the northern states and Canada bloated the sport. ie. the Minnesota North Stars to Dallas, a team in Nashville...

The game was on life support BEFORE the strike. It's better to point to the examples of the MLB and NFL strikes.

ThornedVenom: Dec 4th 2007; 2:38AM

WTF people, I don't understand your whiting of Jonah. He has a valid point of view, but just because it isn't yours that it means that his opinion on the situation has to be downgraded.

It's just that he's not as extremist as all of you bunch.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:50PM

It’s nice that they state that it wasn’t the Kane & Lynch review, but what in Sam Scratch happened that forced both parties to remain gagged? This situation is murky, at best.

Hopefully, GameSpot will survive remain healthy as one of the premiere review/news sites on the web after this bizarre adventure.

Fernando Rocker: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

Hopefully not.

You sound like a Gamespot freelance writer.

le screech!: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:55PM

Are you kidding? Where have you been, they've been taken over by that Ass Clown Josh Larson. He has ZERO credibility.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:55PM

No, I sound like someone who's been a published writer in the industry since 1998. Trust me, Gerstmann wrote for 11 years - that's like writing for 40 years in video game sites and magazines. People move around a LOT.

Fernando Rocker: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:58PM

Or maybe you are defending Gamespot so much because you want Jeff's old job.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:00PM

Oh, trust me - if I were an editor of GameSpot, I'd be ecstatic.

Brandon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:05PM

While it is nice that you've came around to admitting the situation is murky (as opposed to your suggestion over the weekend that "Gerstmann is bullying GameSpot!", really do you think your obvious bias in this situation makes your opinions that relevant? You're a Nixon supporter right before he's forced to resign, nothing more. Sorry.

(And if you think this was mean, it wasn't as bad as Shoe pointing out all the holes in your "libelous" editorial eh? :D )

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:10PM

Um, yeah, sure. Hsu's been emailing me nastygrams all day, threatening to sue my ass off... not. (grin) And we already responded to him.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:13PM

Incidentally, my article said: "This reporter has no idea about the true nature of the firing. I don’t profess to know anything about it, simply because I don’t take anonymous sources seriously, nor do I give weight to associates of Gerstmann, who have probably personal or professional interests in him. I don’t find CNet’s simple “It wasn’t the review” response as informative, and Gerstmann’s silence seems to be more intent on holding GameSpot hostage rather than legality. Additionally, if his silence is legally enforced, then it must be something more serious than a reaction to a review, especially since it wasn’t the first time a writer on GameSpot wrote a negative review about a game that was advertised on the site – and a 6.0 review isn’t a 2.0 review."

Please, if you quote me, quote me correctly.

Fernando Rocker: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:17PM

Your article sucks.

Nushio (NDF - Blue): Dec 3rd 2007; 10:30PM

Who the hell are you, and why are you trolling Joystiq?

colin: Dec 3rd 2007; 11:19PM

i don't see why everyone is jumping on jonah's ass. he does make a valid argument. i think his point is that unless somebody fesses up, this will just remain a conspiracy theory. barely worth the .html its written in.

he's not really a troll, just expressing his opinion. i guess he's not part of the nintendo tigerbeat fanclub omg! lets voat his ass down!!1

we know you guys like to clear your cookies.

colin: Dec 3rd 2007; 11:31PM

ok, i guess i should have read further. i take most of it back ... my bad. he's normally not a troll, though. and some of the things i see voted down are stupid, like a personal vendetta is the only reason for the negative vote.

Ben Marlowe: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:51PM

This is like the cake, all lies.

The_Game21x: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

And the damage control rolls in...

They can say that all they like but I still will not believe them.

jadedcritic: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:54PM

too late - it's just too frigging late, they're done. It doesn't even matter if he really was fired over the K&L review or not anymore. The court of public opinion has tried them and found them guilty.

Question is. What now? Give it a couple months, and a few big name reviews, and a good chunk of people will probably just forget about it. World keeps on spinnin'. Well, at least until the next time it looks like somebody gets fired for a critical review.

DangerMouse: Dec 3rd 2007; 11:16PM

I have a shit eating (grin)

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 9:56PM

You all sound like petulant teenagers --- oh, wait. You probably are. (smirk)

le screech!: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:00PM

you sir, sound like a Douche.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:04PM

Thanks for proving my point. (grin)

Fernando Rocker: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:05PM

You sound like a mediocre published writer that discuss with tennagers in videgames blogs - Oh wait... you probably are.

Jonah Falcon: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:08PM

Resorting to ad hominem abusive, eh? (grin)

dan stabbingworth: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:14PM

Because mature adults argue on a video game blog. GO away. No one likes you.

dan stabbingworth: Dec 3rd 2007; 10:20PM

And while you appear to feel vindicated by being ripped on by joystiq users, no doubt feeling some sort of gratification as your posts get voted down, in reality, this is a community, that you participate in, of your peers, banding together to point out how lame you are.

Also, I find those that preach how mature they are, just wish they were more mature than everyone else. Mature people don't talk about how mature they are. They just act that way.