Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with reputation

Google, it was a funny joke back then-- but isn't it time we moved on?

Anonymous — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:35:27 -0800

ReputationRepair: How can I fix the Google Search result that's showing an old name for a group on Facebook? The jokes not quite as funny 6 years later. Well here's a fun example of sophomoric college humor coming back to bite a guy. Back in college many years ago I created a Facebook group based on an inside joke with my friends. Years later, that group title comes up as the 2nd result when googling for my name. This isn't as great for ones career as you might expect. I've gone in and changed the group's name to something more innocuous, tried making it both private to search, and also public (so that Google could pull the new name). Nothing has worked so far. Google keeps listing the old group name every time you search for me.

I'm scared to delete the group because then I'd lose control over it completely, so if it still came up in search results I'd be screwed.

I've also tried increasing my online presence but sadly it's really hard to compete with the page rank of Facebook groups.

What do you guys think I should do? Any advice for how I can (a) completely remove this group from the Google listings, or (b) have Google update the listing to the new group name and thus clear up my reputation?

When I'm rubber and your glue doesn't work....

Mastercheddaar — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 06:59:35 -0800

Boss wants me to find an online reputation monitor. It turns out that a couple bloggers have posts some not nice things about his business. He heard of companies being able to push these blogs back and told me to investigate them. I used some google fu but the results are overwhelming. There are tons of them and no real way of knowing which ones are goods. Does anyone here have any personal experiences in this area?

What percentage of comments on large blogs/newspapers are propaganda?

Damn That Television — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:20:35 -0800

What percentage of comments on large blogs/newspapers are planned propaganda? As an example:
http://nymag.com/news/features/43892/comments.html#comments

Pretty scary article about an anti-smoking drug with lots of user comments in favor of the drug. I know that many, possibly all, are sincere anecdotes from people who have been helped. But how many are accounts from Pfizer or their PR firm, trying to spin/discredit it?

Are website user comments even something that companies/political groups really bother with?

I know I've got a bad reputation, and it isn't just talk, talk, talk...

Anonymous — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 07:10:38 -0800

How to repair a damaged reputation? I have struggled with the unwinnable combination of depression, social anxiety and severe social awkwardness for many years. I was often irritable, judgemental and negative, while at the same time being an extreme approval-seeker. As you can imagine, my behavior and personality were hard for many people to handle, though there were some people who could understand my struggles and showed me real kindness. I am not exaggerating when I say I was difficult to be around.

Fast forward many years. I moved away from the city I grew up in some years ago and at the time, I had started to come to a place of self-acceptance following therapy and medication. Now, since moving, with further therapy and lots of work with cognitive behavioral therapy and meditation among other things, I believe I have really changed. I now understand for the most part, what behaviors are acceptable (in public or otherwise) and which aren't. I know how to handle myself in most social situations with some ease and most importantly, I know that when I'm feeling neurotic, it is of utmost importance to keep it to myself at that moment (to be dealt with later, alone or in therapy), and just carry on doing what is in front of me to do rather than explosively creating a huge dramatic scene for everyone around me. I have learned to be more positive, to look at life in a different way and not be so judgemental. All good things, and I think most people around me now (in my new city) think I'm relatively normal, and seem to like me. So, success!

However, I will be moving home soon and due to social groups that I still belong to, I will be again be around many of the people that I have known for years, and who knew me at my most difficult times. They will still think of me as a moody, irritable, neurotic, socially inappropriate person. I guess the best way to change their opinion is to just do the things I've learned over the last few years that have made me a better person, but it was a bit easier for me in my new city as I was kind of a blank slate and in many ways, I could recreate myself. It seems harder to change when I am fighting against preconceived notions.

While it might seem simple enough for me to tell myself to just continue to use all the coping mechanisms I've learned over the last few years and let people's opinions change naturally, I am troubled by the thought that walking into social situations with people who I know have preconceived notions will somehow cause me to regress into my old insecurities and behaviors - if this makes sense? Also, can people's opinions of someone really change anyway?

I know that ultimately, I should do what I believe is right and good and not care what other people think, and while I have improved immensely in this regard over the years, I still do care. I have always been an extreme approval seeker, to the point in my worst days of being like a puppy who gets kicked and keeps running back for more attention (which just irritated people more). All the progress I've made in so many ways and yet I cannot comprehend not caring what people think. Is this my real problem?

To give you an idea of timeframe, I am talking about people of all ages I have known since my teens and I am now in my thirties. So some of the people I am talking about I have known 20 years.

Any help would be appreciated as I just feel confused over the whole thing. If you need more details or would like to discuss privately, please mention in the thread and I'll memail you. Thanks.

Where are these quotes about reputation from?

eisenkr — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:50:10 -0800

[Quotation source-filter] I've found many references on the Internet to two similar quotes about losing a good reputation. The quotes are attributed to Warren Buffett and Benjamin Franklin, but I haven't been able to pin down what the original source is. The full text of the quotes are inside. The quotes are:

"It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently."

Warren Buffett

"It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it"

Benjamin Franklin

I'd love to hear anybody's ideas about where to find the definitive source of these quotations.

How to keep my reputation intact?

Anonymous — Mon, 19 May 2008 18:59:21 -0800

How do I preserve my professional reputation after a rough parting with an abusive boss? Heeding the advice of the hivemind, I quit my job after my boss started yelling at me, calling me stupid in public, and generally berating me to the point that other people started asking me questions about why she was so mad at me. Now I'm worried that she will start to poison the well. My boss has a reputation for being supportive, open and growth oriented. Really, she takes anyone who works outside her beliefs and tears them to shreds, until they leave. When I started working for her, I heard the first part. Now that I'm quitting, I get a lot of 'she sure is brilliant, but she's impossible to work with/the devil/controlling' etc

However, we work in a small, connected industry in our city. I'm concerned that she will paint me as a diva, a negative person or a poisoner (all things I've been accused of). Even though I'm leaving in a few days, she hasn't told any of our clients that I'm going - now I'm worried that they will think that I quit abruptly and am being unprofessional. These are people I am likely to work with in the future, somewhere along the line.

So, how do I do damage control, keep her from talking behind my back and generally throwing a wrench in the works?

You can't be President - you took a nude photo 10 years ago! So you're a bad person!

divabat — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 18:13:32 -0800

Does doing anything sex-industry-related (from taking a nude photo to actually working as a prostitute or exotic dancer) actually damn you from ever living a successful life in another area? Has anyone ever managed to be known and respected in their field without falling into "OMG SHE POSED NUDE" controversy? I've noticed lately that no matter how successful or respected someone is in their field, if they've dabbled in something vaguely "sexually deviant" in the past, it comes back to haunt them and suddenly their respect level goes down (for example, Heather Mills or Vanessa Hudgens). Often it's something as innocuous as an old nude photo taken years before they were famous.

I personally find this a bit disturbing as it implies that nudity/sexuality is something terrible and disgusting, and since it affects women more, I find this rather misogynistic. However, I would like to know if anyone has ever managed to beat this societal expectation by not being "tarnished" by past sexual activity.

All those people that pose for artsy nude photos (or heck, even porn) - is it possible for them to get a more respected (by society) career or life without those old photos haunting them? I know of people who supported themselves through grad/law school by stripping, but does their past strip club job affect their future career negatively?

I'm sure that people who have worked in the sex industry in the past can (and do) move on to careers and lifestyles that are more society-supported (in a sense). This isn't a question of "are strippers really smart enough to study law". I'm wondering more about the societal impact - whether any of their work now would be tarnished by their past work.

(I'm also curious because I've been thinking about getting some artsy semi-nude or nude photos for personal reasons, or even getting involved in art projects that involve some level of nudity - but my family is somewhat in the public eye locally and we come from a conservative society, so I dread the idea that my dad could be knocked off his job or that all my activism work becomes useless because of one photo someone dug up from years ago. People have dug up old comments about my financial situation to use against me, so this is very possible.)

Don't get your honey where your money is.

Anonymous — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 12:49:32 -0800

How do I maintain positive relations with a group of work friends recently turned neighbors? A month ago, I was in a living situation emergency where I needed to make an immediate exit. As luck would have it, Co-Worker X offered a very attractive option. There was a vacancy at his apartment complex several blocks from our work place. I seized upon the opportunity and happily moved in.. several doors down from him.

I had not seen much of Co-Worker X (due to busy schedules) until this week. I knew he frequented neighbor bars and spent time with several co-workers but I had no idea the extent (or the um.. intensity) of his personal life. He parties all the time, loudly and with a large collection of fellow co-workers. My move-in to the same complex as Co-Worker X was public knowledge around the company. Co-Worker X and others invited me to join in a night of festivities. The night turned into debauchery, illegal activities, and blacking out intoxication. Several neighbors on the same floor as us complained about the noise and hallway traffic. I retired early from that night, needless to say. I have not joined them since.

Here's the problem: I am afraid that my location to such hard partying will tarnish my reputation at work. Co-Worker X and crew continue to invite me out (at work or via phone), drunkenly knock on my door to say hello at all hours of the night/day, and tell stories of their previous adventures, associating my name with their antics due to my proximity and/or their brief neighbor greetings. They ask if I could do beer runs (I own a vehicle; they do not), spare a bottle, or have any cigarettes. I did not know this prior, but the people who Co-Worker X (though not him) associates with have poor reputations and are stagnant within the company ladder. I’ve mostly ignored or politely declined their invites.

I am young. I have been known to go out to a bar and have a few drinks. I have been known to consume alcohol in the company of my direct bosses, Manager A and Manager B. I am in the good graces of my direct bosses. In fact, we have a very close friendship that extends beyond work. Our friendship has not hindered my work performance. It may have even helped. They know my current grief and stress over this party explosion. The company is young. It is also known to be a rumor mill. I’m afraid that the directors/executives outside of my department (or even within) will hear false information about me.

I want to keep good relations with Co-Worker X and team because we work together in the same department. I do not harbor any ill will towards them. During the daylight and in sober conditions, they are nice people. However, I do not want to be “thrown under the bus” by them.

How do I discourage or disassociate my personal life with them in a subtle, friendly way? How do I maintain positive relations with Co-Worker X and team while severing non-work related contact? How do I stop my name from being affiliated with their debauchery? What can I do to save myself?

(As a side note, this is not my chosen career field. I am a student attending graduate school. It is a fun job I have to pay the bills and save for the future. I've been promoted several times already but have absolutely no illusions of staying with the company and/or field.)

Examples of Companies Inappropriately Editing Their Wikipedia Page?

jmprice — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:56:14 -0800

Can you give me examples of companies that have tried to remove controversial information from their Wikipedia profile? Hi everyone, previously I asked for examples of companies that had tried to use social media/user-generated content with unexpected results. The feedback was great.

I'm here for a followup:
Can you give me examples of companies that have tried to remove controversial (but relevant and factual) information from their Wikipedia profile?

A good example of this is the Wikipedia page for the NIH's National Institute on Drug Abuse. NIDA officials edited their page to remove links critical of their policies. Wikipedians discovered the editing and now NIDA's Wikipedia page mentions that NIDA officials previously attempted to remove criticism.

I can also remember that Congressional offices have gotten into trouble over editing Congress member's pages.

Can you think of other examples?

Who would sacrifice their reputation for the sake of the world?

Sticherbeast — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 16:56:18 -0800

Who would sacrifice their reputation for the sake of the world? I'm looking for characters in both fiction and history who allowed themselves to be either completely forgotten or despised in order to perform what they perceive to be the greater good. I'm interested in characters who are correct, incorrect, and/or ambiguous with regard to what constitutes the "greater good." Examples off the top of my head include Judas from Borges' "Three Versions of Judas" and John Smith from The Dead Zone, as well as some characters from Joss Whedon's stuff.

Help me figure out the gossip before I get there, thanks.

Anonymous — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 15:59:01 -0800

What kind of reputation does MIT's "oldest technology magazine" Technology Review have? I have a Very Good Gig at a reputable university, but an opportunity to do two things I've wanted to do for a long time (1. Work for a magazine 2. Live in Boston) has opened up.

I've done the dotcom thing in a previous life and because of my experiences, job security is very important to me. I found this article (from August 2005) that speaks of the publication's "downsizing" in print editions and readership, but other than that, I don't know/can't find much else about how the magazine's doing and/or how highly it's regarded in the world.

1) If you read this publication, what's it's reputation?

2) If you're at MIT (or just happen to know), what's the outlook for the publication? Does it appear to be doing well? Is it having to fight to survive?

3) If you're currently working for a historically-print-now-online publication -- would you warn others to avoid the industry?

Thanks, send more info to mitwannabe@gmail.com.

What celebrities have you met?

alas — Tue, 18 Jan 2005 16:04:16 -0800

So I met Alton Brown last night at a book signing here in Tampa, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he is even more likable in person than he is on TV or through his weblog. What I'm interested in learning now is which celebrities you've met/run into/bruised with your front bumper, and whether they lived up to or belied their 'image,' whatever it may be. Cont'd inside. My personal list (those everyone here would know, anyway):

Alton Brown - As mentioned above
David Bowie - Magnetic
"Weird Al" Yankovic - Incredibly cool, and so appreciative of his fans
Cuba Gooding, Jr. - Down to earth
Donald Sutherland - Tremendous prick (no, I wouldn't know about *that* one)
Hulk Hogan - Literally bumped into him while shopping at a bookstore. Besides being truly MASSIVE, the guy really deserves his reputation for friendliness.

I know, I really ought to get out more. Now how about you?