Categories: OLD Media Moves

CNET reporters sue Hewlett-Packard in spying case

Three CNET Networks reporters filed a lawsuit against computer maker Hewlett-Packard in relation to the incident last year in which the company spied on them to determine a leak from its board, a Reuters story stated.

The Reuters story reported, “The suit, filed in California state court in San Francisco, also contends that Hewlett-Packard broke state business-practices rules, CNET, an online technology newsletter, said on its Web site. The suit, filed by the reporters Dawn Kawamoto, Stephen Shankland and Tom Krazit, seeks unspecified damages.

“A Hewlett-Packard spokesman, Ryan Donovan, told CNET that the company was ‘disappointed by their decision and will defend itself.’ He said the company had apologized to the reporters and made ‘a substantial settlement offer’ to the reporters, their relatives and charities of their choice.

“The suit stems from a scandal that rocked the company last year after disclosures that its board had hired private investigators to determine which director had leaked information about sensitive boardroom discussions to news outlets, including CNET and The Wall Street Journal.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.