We made a few major updates to two S.H.A.M.E. profiles.
Malcolm Gladwell's profile has been updated with information about the undisclosed paid speaking gig he did for Philip Morris in 2005, as well as his attempt to dodge the fact when confronted with it by email. We also updated Gladwell's list of known corporate speaking clients. Here's some of it:
- In 2005, Gladwell was paid to speak at a Philip Morris recruitment event. The company described the gig in its "highly confidential" 2005 performance summary: "Our efforts to develop world-class leaders remain a priority. PM USA continued to enhance its leadership development efforts by introducing new sales training programs . . . The program was attended by members of PM USA's senior leadership team and included an overview of PM USA, our Mission and core strategies, a tour of the factory, a lecture by best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell and two evening dinner receptions. Based on formal evaluation surveys and subsequent discussions and communications with the attendees, the event was very well perceived and rated by the attendees and is having a positive impact on our ongoing recruiting efforts."
- In an email exchange with S.H.A.M.E. Gladwell would not directly admit that he spoke at a Philip Morris event, and instead referred to Philip Morris as "a company with an interest in the tobacco business." Which is a funny way of putting it, considering that Philip Morris is the biggest tobacco company in the world, and maker of Marlboro, the best-selling cigarette brand of all time.
Jeffrey Goldberg's profile has been updated with Goldberg's recent attempt to deny that he had ever worked as a prison guard:1
- In 2012, Goldberg denied that he was ever a prison guard: "the actual title of my position was 'prisoner counselor,' believe it or not, which meant that I saw after the culinary, hygiene and medical needs of the prisoners." Yet in his book, Goldberg explicitly states that he was more than just a counselor: "I was a 'prisoner counselor,' a job title that did not accurately reflect my duties in the related fields of discipline and punishment, but which did convey the notion that I was not meant to engage the prisoners solely with pepper spray and barked commands."
