I would be the first one to agree that computers are an important part of the world, but they are only a part. Perversely, some might argue, this perspective has helped to make us successful in the computer business. We don’t only publicize our new developments on the Net, but we try to get into the real, regular media as well. And let’s face it, a hundred Internets wouldn’t have the power of the New York Times. We don’t only advertise in computer magazines and computer shows, but we try to reach people in any way we can.

That’s why we were able to ignore the scandalous rumors about us on the Net for so long. We recognized that only a small, obsessed subgroup was logging on to these discussion groups, but then something alarming began to happen. Real reporters from legitimate media started to follow all the furor surrounding the IIA that was going on all over the Net. To their credit, they did not just irresponsibly republish all the garbage, but started asking a lot of questions. This was serious; it wasn’t just the lunatic fringe anymore.

The questions all revolved around one central issue: Was the IIA out to give everyone free Internet access, or was it only going to provide service to those who paid? We had better convince everyone that it was the former, or else there would be no IIA.

At just this time, one of the industry’s most important conferences, COMNET in Washington, D.C., was approaching. This prestigious event is attended by the press, as well as thousands of key people in the computer and Internet industries. The IIA was scheduled to have its own auditorium at this event to present lectures and demonstrations about the Internet.

The auditorium we were given was large enough to hold several hundred people. We decided to confront all the questions about the IIA directly by holding a press conference in our auditorium, right in the middle of this event. We sent out press notices, posted notice on the Internet, and informed all the reporters who were calling. A typical press conference at COMNET attracts between eight and twelve reporters, but this one was going to be different. Within three days we had so many reservations that we needed to order more chairs. Every reporter at COMNET was coming. This was big news, and nobody wanted to miss the fireworks. We knew we had one shot and we’d better make it good.

The whole idea was to do everything possible to bolster the credibility of the IIA. We approached this along several different tracks. To show that the IIA was charitably minded and really benefited the user community, we invited a dozen or so longtime users from the Washington area to speak about their experiences with the IIA on the Net. Of course, we selected those users who seemed to be particularly articulate and Internet-savvy, based on the E-mail we regularly received from them. We also chose users who had been eloquent and outspoken in their defense of the IIA in the various discussion groups we monitored on the Net.

We went one step further to ensure that our good works would not go unnoticed. We contacted a school for underprivileged children from the Bronx where we had donated computer equipment and set up an Internet training program, and asked if we could bring one of the students down to speak at the convention. The school was so excited that they sent the whole class, at our expense. What did it matter? we thought. These kids were so cute, everybody was going to just love them.