Wired gets the unusual opportunity to test the fervor of the internet’s two most mobilized camps. The political supporters or Mac Users. Hint: Ron Paul in Leopardskin?

Apple Fanatics	Ron Paul Enthusiasts
Kim Zetter writes an accurate article on what experts say is the poor security architecture of the iPhone’s operating system	Sarah Lai Stirland writes an accurate article on a recent flurry of deceptive spam promoting Ron Paul’s candidacy
Convinced that iPhone security is a-okay, blogger Daniel Eran Dilger falsely accuses Kim of basing the entire article on a single source. (Three sources are named in the Wired story.)	Someone creates a “Sarah Lai Stirland” account on a decoy Rudy Giuliani forum, and posts a message suggesting Sarah had been paid off by Giuliani fans to write a “fake” story
Sleaze Factor: 2.0	Sleaze Factor: 7.0
Quotes
“I dare you to have Zetter rewrite the article after interviewing more than one source. Perhaps this would result in an informed, balanced piece rather than a simple regurgitation of the message one individual fed her as a story.”	“The fake Ron Paul article we talked about on aim has been published. Hopefully, it will help accomplish your goals… Please send my payment via PayPal.”
Effort: 6.0 (2,300 word piece)	Effort: 3.0 (A few sentences)
Fallout
MacDailyNews re-reports Dilger’s claim as fact, then declines to correct the false story. Apple fans on the site’s message board pummel Kim with misogynist remarks	A Paulite makes a two-and-a-half minute video based on the fake posting. The video is widely promoted on message boards and blogs, and logs 16,000 hits on YouTube in less than a week.
Reach: 4.0 (Google News)	Reach: 8.0 (Blogs. Reddit, but no Digg)
“Women should stay out of tech, period, and be given an abacus to play with. — MacDailyNews reader who’s never tried to use an abacus	“So Wired has been exposed as lying about non-existent Ron Paul-supporting spammers. Even if they weren’t lying … (Paul’s fundraising) is what drives lying little statist creeps like Wired editorialists to spew their online lies.” – Lew Rockwell.com
Zeal: 2.0 (Some dissent. No hate mail)	Zeal: 9.0 (Little dissent. Lots of hate mail)
Total: 14.0	Total: 27.0