1. I didn't think you came off that well in this story. It seemed like the writer went out of their way to emphasize negative qualities. Still, a very interesting read. Stories like this one are the reason I still subscribe to the print version.

Posted at 3:21PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Randy H.

2. Well, you have to have thick skin to be in this game. One of the things I didn't like was that the reporter thought I was giving the hostess at the Viceroy a hard time. I'm *really*, *really* nice to service folks. I give folks huge tips because I spent half my life as a waiter/bus boy. My family was in the restaurant business--and some members of my family still are. I treat everyone in the world with the same respect and dignity be they a billionaire, fireman (my brother), or a janitor (my grandfather and I for a time). As a long-time service employee I've been on the receiving end of some really nasty folks... folks who bust on you and give you horrible tips. Folks who yell at you. I would never treat anyone like that. You could interpret the scene at the Viceroy as a snotty hostess who was perturbed that I wanted a nicer table closer to the heat lamp--which I think was the case. It was cold and I thought the reporter would be more comfortable near a heat lamp. Instead of thinking that was nice she spun it as me being a control freak. Now, mind you, I am a control freak when it comes to espresso--I'll send it back if it ain't perfect--but I'll do it in a really nice way. :-) Those folks who know me know very well that there is a public interpretation of who I am and then there is who I really am. The world wants Internet CEOs to be brash, ambitious, clever, aggressive, driven, etc.--I'm not going to try and fight that. I am what I am and I really could care less how a journalist interprets that--she's entitled to my opinion. If she thinks after spending three hours with me she can make judgement calls that's fine with me... we all know how this works--journalism is story telling. If there wasn't a story there wouldn't be a feature with a big old photo. Now, I do want to be the CEO of AOL some day and I don't have a problem saying that. If that kind of ambition rubs some folks the wrong way I don't really care. I'd rather folks be honest about what their ambitions are... transparency makes life so much easier. So, I think she got that part of the story correct. I do want to do great things and I think I could do amazing things at AOL if they let me--which they are currently doing.

Posted at 4:20PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Jason

3. I dunno, I thought you (Jason) came out fine in this story. I didn't get the impression the writer was busting your chops. Everyone who knows you knows you're a blunt, no-bs, don't care what you think I'm going to say what's on my mind, kind of guy -- and that is how you were painted. And it is, frankly, refreshing. The way Stern is refreshingly honest. Rather, I'm much more worried about how Toro came off in that picture. I guess he's cuddly to you, but to me he looks like a crocodile with fur -- if he tried to sit on my lap, I'd run ;)

Posted at 4:26PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Mark Jeffrey

4. accurate interview...i don't see anything negative in the article...factually mostly correct and its all about vision passion, and focus baby..and Toro looks good and is smiling .. peace

Posted at 5:41PM on Dec 30th 2005 by karol

5. Are they RM Williams boots?

Posted at 7:04PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Duncan

6. Nope... just black shoes.

Posted at 7:16PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Jason

7. Jason- you picked up on the same thing I did. The description of the treatment of the hostess right at the beginning of the article set a tone. For those that don't know you (myself included), it could leave the wrong impression. The AOL CEO thing seems reasonable- it is a good goal. But the writer (in my view) implies that you're stroking your own ego rather than just being ambitious. The way she emphasizes that you've brought it up multiple times, etc. Again, there is just a negative tone in a few of the paragraphs that really left an impression on me. Congratulations again though- it was an interesting article (had no idea you were the Silicon Alley guy). I have no problem saying that I hope for a piece like this in Wired about me some day.

Posted at 7:48PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Randy H.

8. >> The way she emphasizes that you've brought it up multiple >> times, etc. Again, there is just a negative tone in a few >> of the paragraphs that really left an impression on me. The funny thing is SHE kept bringing it up... like over and over asking me for the video! That was my other problem with the article. She ask me about my future with AOL, I mentioned the video and my goal and SHE kept bringing it up. She wanted to paint a picture of me after spending three hours with me and you can't expect it to be really that deep. When Warren St. John did the last piece he spent at least 20 hours with me and when Larissa did the profile in the New Yorker she spent like 40 hours with me. This was a rush job--she wrote it in a week--so you can't expect that much. I'm not complaining... frankly, I'll take the profile even with the spin... the photos good and that's what people remember. :-)

Posted at 9:39PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Jason

9. My impression was that she was looking really hard for a negative spin and was begrudgingly giving you some respect for your abilities and insight. I wondered about the part about you bringing up the "joke" about being CEO - it doesn't surprise me to learn that SHE kept bringing it up, too. I was very turned off, though, by her attitude toward the business model, the bloggers (i.e. me) and our pay. she seems highly doubtful that any of us are going to stick around if we get a slightly better offer. ("it's not clear that $25 million is a sane amount for 10 disconnected employees and a network of bloggers who could jump ship at any moment") From what I know, most of us wouldn't jump ship unless we were dragged out by a gang of blog pirates. Eryn gives us zero credit for loyalty and that really got my goat. Loyalty, and kick-ass content, are worth a lot of money, Ms. Brown.

Posted at 10:43PM on Dec 30th 2005 by sarah gilbert

10. That reporter had it in for you, I bet she feels threatened by bloggers and is lashing out at the business model because she fears job security. Crazy as that sounds i see it in my industry to, analyists/reporters who don't share your vision or can recieve some kind of consulting dollars from the vision you are pushing attempt to marginalize you. I imagine this kind of reporting will continue as reporters are asked to report on their own "destruction".

Posted at 11:41PM on Dec 30th 2005 by Markus

11. I think you came across well. Could it be that the dining companion(s) the author has when she goes out to eat isn't forthright enough to ask for a good table, and she looks upon dining companions with enough forthrightness to insist on a good table as aggressive. I, too, have asked for nice tables at restaurants for my guests. Your request to the hostess for a nicer table came across as chivalrous. I do think, though, that maybe some of her perceived "negativity" could be because she has more of a comfort level with a certain type of "Internet executive" -you know, either the bookish or geeky, or the cosmopolitan, Ivy League (or Stanford) educated type that you find in almost any industry. The type that can hide their ambition amidst cultural reference superficialities. She may have little experience dealing with an exec who has come up from a working-class background to make his way in the world- while still showing the authentic personality traits that equipped him well to make the climb.

Posted at 12:25AM on Dec 31st 2005 by Russell Shaw

12. I thought the profile was good. Accurate? Probably not. But a good read, definitely.

Posted at 4:56PM on Dec 31st 2005 by Michael G. Richard

13. There is an underlying biting tone to the article, but I actually think it's a good thing because it sets up a tension that makes the article a good read. That means more people are likely to read through the piece rather than just skim the first few paragraphs. So it ends up being a good publicity piece for all of us. Jason for AOL CEO. Yes!

Posted at 8:41PM on Dec 31st 2005 by Jan Kabili

14. If the restaurant was not packed full, I see no reason, why two should be stuffed at a small table. Besides that, the picture somehow looks very much like what I would assume with Texan / Dallas style, I am just missing the cowboy hat. ;)

Posted at 11:01AM on Jan 1st 2006 by Nicole Simon

15. Once I saw "Revenge of the Dotcom Poster Boy," it didn't take GPS to see where it was going... I'm just wondering if you had advance notice of the title. Considering the slant she came in with and your open ambition, it seems like a very positive article. So how much is Toro commanding for an appearance fee these days?

Posted at 12:17PM on Jan 1st 2006 by Robert F. Walsh

16. The chair clashes with your dog.

Posted at 3:49PM on Jan 3rd 2006 by Meg

17. nice dog,felt the interview was ok,just ok

Posted at 7:59PM on Jan 9th 2006 by Patrick Phelan

18. http://www.imdb.com/gallery/ss/0379725/Ss/0379725/12.jpg?path=gallery&path_key=0379725

Posted at 12:26AM on Jan 10th 2006 by Gabrielle Pascoe

19. Very nice story. Nice to see someone other than people from silicon valley coming up with new ideas that change the way we work. Although...since you are from New York, the media thing is pretty much a given since it is big business there, but not sure if that had any impact on your business decisions. Your story is inspiring to me, as I am too a web developer who doesn't do programming but am obsessed with new/and rewvitalizing old developments on the internet. Good Luck on the AOL ladder.

Posted at 5:01PM on Jan 21st 2006 by Roy Tahsin