Silicon Valley Taco Style News: Reportage, Opinion, and Political Commentary
November 1, 2021
I noted a phrase in a Silicon Valley type online information service’s story about Elizabeth Holmes. Ms. Holmes was a college drop out who founded Theranos. She has been saddled with the catchphrase fake it until you make it.
The story I am referencing is “Theranos FOMO Kept the DeVos Family from Doing Its Investment Homework.” I think FOMO means “fear of missing out” in case you are not hip to real news reporting with a squirt of Instagram salsa.
Here’s the phrase I spotted in what I thought was a summary of testimony in the Holmes’ legal matter:
Treating the lack of FDA approval as a reason to bet on Theranos was a small aside in Peterson’s testimony; it was just one reason she thought Theranos seemed like a good investment. (A skepticism of the regulatory process is also one of the reasons Theranos board member General James Mattis wasn’t concerned with some of the company’s actions — something the powerful conservatives seem to have in common). But it set the tone for a day of testimony about the DeVos family’s approach to its $100 million investment in Theranos — which seemed to be more about shiny things and FOMO than about the science behind the blood testing devices Holmes promised would change the world.
Did you notice the taco garnish. It appears in parentheses, which means it is an explanatory factoid. Here it is:
something the powerful conservatives seem to have in common
Really? Powerful people have something in common: Power. But this is a spicy generalization.
In my opinion this is a good example of Silicon Valley taco style news. Dump stuff into a news shell and advance the agenda of the real journalists covering a trial. You know. On the record, a jury, lawyers, and a judge.
Stephen E Arnold, November 1, 2021
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