Owen Thomas: Gimme Some Truth

Owen Thomas joins Melinda Byerley to talk about the history of his controversial blog post about Peter Thiel’s sexuality and the ethos of narrative control that pervades Silicon Valley. His story includes how and why Nick Denton founded Valleywag. His story is about how journalists can incite grudges and the destruction money and power can unleash. ARTICLES & BOOKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE The original 2007 Gawker article: "Peter Theil is totally gay, people"  The Washington Post published a good summary of the situation after the judgment: "Peter Thiel had no reason to be angry at Gawker for writing that he's gay" Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue by Ryan Holiday, Penguin Books, 2018, tells the story of the aftermath of Owen’s blog post and how Peter Thiel brought down Gawker Ryan Mac’s more recent account, “This Man Helped Peter Thiel Demolish Gawker,” talks about how Aron D’Souza helped Thiel bring down Gawker Kara Swisher’s interview talking about mirror-ocracy: “They look at themselves reflected and think their success is earned and they made it on their own, especially for white men...” MUSICAL INSPIRATION FOR THIS EPISODE ON SPOTIFY: "Gimme Some Truth" by John Lennon   ABOUT THIS PODCAST Stayin' Alive in Tech is an oral history of Silicon Valley and technology. Melinda Byerley, the host, is a 20-year veteran of Silicon Valley; and the founder of Timeshare CMO, a digital marketing intelligence firm, based in San Francisco. We really appreciate your reviews, shares on social media, and your recommendations for future guests. And check out our Spotify playlist for a playlist for all the songs we refer to on our show.

Om Podcasten

The tech industry is great at talking about the future, especially on podcasts. What we're not so great at is taking the time to understand our past. And that's what this podcast is all about. From the Noyce and Fairchild Semiconductor generation through the founding of social media, the history of Silicon Valley has many lessons for us. And we'll be interviewing the people who lived through these experiences to bring their knowledge to you. You'll get explanations for how we got where we are, which can also suggest where the future might be; along with a few laughs and inside stories from those who lived through it. So pull up a seat and listen to the tales of the past, in which may lie seeds for our future. New Episodes twice a month on Thursdays.