UnderCurrent has been following with some amusement the ongoing John McAfee on the run in Central America saga that has been dominating the news recently. McAfee is the founder of the anti-virus software that bears his name, though it is now owned by Intel.
Since John McAfee’s rambunctious exploits began hitting headlines last month, UnderCurrent has noticed that Proper Journalist has been bombarded by public relations “outreaches”, often coinciding with new developments in the case.
12 November 2012 – John McAfee is identified as a ‘person of interest’ by Belizean police
14 November 2012: “McAfee Announces New Leaders of Worldwide Sales and Marketing”
15 November 2012: “McAfee Threats Report Shows Global Expansion of Cybercrime”
16 November 2012: “McAfee Warns Consumers of the ‘12 Scams of Christmas’ as Around 60% of Aussies Plan to Shop Online During the 2012 Holiday Season”
28 November 2012: “McAfee All Access 2013 Enhances Cross-Device Protection for Consumers”
30 November 2012: McAfee sends Proper Journalist a free copy of McAfee All Access and an invitation to enter a media competition to win a Red Balloon voucher.
4 December 2012 – John McAfee’s location is revealed in Guatemala
4 December 2012: “McAfee All Access competition reminder”
11 December 2012: “McAfee Helps Keep Consumers Even Safer on Their Mobile Devices”
12 December 2012 – John McAfee is deported to the United States
13 December 2012: “McAfee Reveals Australian Threat Predictions for 2013”
So that’s eight media contacts with Proper Journalist in the month since John McAfee started making headlines, compared to five in the six months previous (24 October, 19 September, 6 July, 28 June and 21 June).
UnderCurrent wonders, if John McAfee were to be executed, would Proper Journalist come to own McAfee?