JetSmarter, the “Uber for private jets”, wanted to charge a Verge reporter $2K if they didn't publish a positive story about their flight after service demo
T.C. Sottek / The Verge : Tweets: @harrymccracken , @padresj , @chillmage , @davidmackau , @backlon , @candicechoi , @sarahbuhr , @danawollman , and @benpopper . See also Mediagazer Tweets: Harry McCracken / @harrymccracken : Fortunately for my pocketbook, I ignored JetSmarter's emailed pitch. http://www.theverge.com/... @padresj : I can't count # of pitches I get like this every day. “We want to work w/you, but only if you say something nice.” http://www.theverge.com/... @chillmage : my eyeballs almost rolled out of my head when our reporter showed me this agreement http://twitter.com/... David Mack / @davidmackau : A company that markets itself as “Uber for private jets” is behaving exactly like you expect it would http://www.theverge.com/... Dieter Bohn / @backlon : JetSmarter has been called “Uber for private jets.” Apparently, the “Uber” part here means it's awful. http://www.theverge.com/... Candice Choi / @candicechoi : The $2,000 will be charged... “(ii) in the event Journalist fails to post the article described above” http://www.theverge.com/... Sarah Buhr / @sarahbuhr : JetSmarter should fire PR immediately. http://twitter.com/... Dana Wollman / @danawollman : Engadget passed on covering this company even before we knew they were shady. Reassured that was the right decision. http://twitter.com/... Ben Popper / @benpopper : It's about ethics in jet journalism http://twitter.com/... See also Mediagazer
Context & Ripple Effects
JetSmarter's pitch to The Verge inverted the usual review dynamic: fly the 'Uber for private jets', then pay $2,000 if no positive story ran. The demand surfaced days before the company's bigger image problem went public — members pushing back over perk cuts, price increases, and a non-disparagement clause letting it cancel memberships of anyone who complained publicly.
Read together, the two stories show a startup at a $1.5B valuation trying to control its narrative on every front at once — press, paying customers — while its cost structure strains underneath.
First-order effects
- The Verge reporter avoided the fee by not publishing on JetSmarter's terms, and fellow journalists like Harry McCracken publicly flagged similar conditional pitches as routine PR practice.
- JetSmarter's editorial-conditions demand became the story itself, attaching scrutiny to a company already facing member unrest.
Second-order effects
- The same control instinct shows up in the membership terms: with perks shrinking and prices rising, the non-disparagement clause turns dissatisfied customers into a reputational liability the company manages contractually.
- PR shops pitching 'coverage contingent on praise' now risk the pitch being published as evidence, raising the cost of the tactic across tech communications.
Third-order effects
- If companies keep treating independent coverage as hostile or purchasable, they build their own channels instead — a path a16z followed with its in-house opinion section, and one consistent with the pressure journalists describe covering Facebook, including quote approval and ghost-written op-eds.
- The pattern points toward an industry where narrative control is contractual and owned-media-first, weakening the review economy startups once depended on for credibility.
The trend: Tech companies are shifting from courting independent press to contracting around it — paid-placement demands, non-disparagement clauses, and owned media replacing earned coverage.