Bill Tancer writes in Time Online about message boards reacting to John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods misuse of anonomously posted messages about his company .

We're now in an era where MySpace usage is growing at a phenomenal rate, Wikipedia has over five million entries and users are posting their video commentary along with exploding Diet Coke/Mentos videos. Yet message boards devoted to financial information, as well as a myriad of other topics, continue to thrive — even in a time when most mainstream online participation is user reviews and blog commentary. And as we've seen with many Web 2.0 applications, anonymity, a key feature of message board postings, can call into question the veracity and motive of the boards' content.

When used properly message boards are one of many tools to communicate true and insightful information.

 

We have been retained by Susan Schaab to help promote her new novel "Wearing the Spider" with our Web2.0 PR services.

Here is a description of her book from her site:

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America. It occurs in some form every 79 seconds. And nefarious minds are dedicated to the discovery of new methods for its commission. The same technological advances that make communication easy and instant have torn our identities from us and turned them into “objects” that can be stolen and misused.

What if a male law firm partner hijacked the identity of a female associate? What if he used email impersonation and electronic forgery to set her up as the mastermind of an illegal scheme? And what if she was ultimately framed for murder as a result of his actions?

Wearing the Spider, a debut legal thriller by Susan Schaab, explores these possibilities.