Gary Esposito.
I have discovered who Steve Ebbling is. (For your reference: Link One and Link Two. Also, a basic Google search shows his comments elsewhere.)
For those just tuning in and in need of a recap, "Steve Ebbling" has repeatedly harassed me from an IP belonging to Grey Global Group as well as another based in Brooklyn. "Steve Ebbling" has consistently made crude comments concerning my sexuality, which are both incorrect and trending towards hate speech. Steve Ebbling also repeatedly insulted my size and appearance, but I can't quite work up any vitriol for that as I am a large, doughy, pale fellow.
After some investigation, I've come to the conclusion that Gary Esposito of Brooklyn, New York, a frequent contributor to The Comics Reporter has left comments on both The Rack and this site using the name "Steve Ebbling."
It all starts with this nasty comment thread dating back from 2005. Gary's comments came in from a New York City IP address associated with Grey Advertising (208.196.60.32), feature the same formatting (including a love of "Peace" at the bottom), and contain the same vitriol against me.
Someone named Gary Esposito works (or has worked for) for Grey Global Group and as noted in the previous posts, Steve Ebbling's comments have consistently come from an IP belonging to Grey Global, who are the parent company for Grey Advertising.
Gary Esposito was at MoCCA (Link 1 | Link 2 | Link 3), Steve said he'd "see me" at MoCCA in a comment left on The Rack.
I contacted Tom Spurgeon after making these connections and Gary Esposito has denied a connection to "Steve Ebbling" and his comments. Tom has given Gary Esposito the benefit of the doubt, but I feel no need to do the same.
It should be noted that I bear no ill-will to Tom or The Comics Reporter. I do not think there's a better site out there for smart, well-written comics coverage and am troubled by the fact that Gary Esposito doesn't value The Comics Reporter enough to admit he's been caught red-handed and disassociate himself from the organization.
If you'd like, please link to this post with the keywords Gary Esposito. This will ensure that Gary Esposito and Google both learn that insulting and harassing somebody who works in web marketing and search engine optimization is not a good idea.
Addendum:
As of the morning of June 27, 2007, this blog is already at the bottom of page 1 when you use Google to search for the term Gary Esposito. That's fast, and I want to thank everyone that's made a link so far.
Frank Kim also pointed this out in comments:
For those just tuning in and in need of a recap, "Steve Ebbling" has repeatedly harassed me from an IP belonging to Grey Global Group as well as another based in Brooklyn. "Steve Ebbling" has consistently made crude comments concerning my sexuality, which are both incorrect and trending towards hate speech. Steve Ebbling also repeatedly insulted my size and appearance, but I can't quite work up any vitriol for that as I am a large, doughy, pale fellow.
After some investigation, I've come to the conclusion that Gary Esposito of Brooklyn, New York, a frequent contributor to The Comics Reporter has left comments on both The Rack and this site using the name "Steve Ebbling."
It all starts with this nasty comment thread dating back from 2005. Gary's comments came in from a New York City IP address associated with Grey Advertising (208.196.60.32), feature the same formatting (including a love of "Peace" at the bottom), and contain the same vitriol against me.
Someone named Gary Esposito works (or has worked for) for Grey Global Group and as noted in the previous posts, Steve Ebbling's comments have consistently come from an IP belonging to Grey Global, who are the parent company for Grey Advertising.
Gary Esposito was at MoCCA (Link 1 | Link 2 | Link 3), Steve said he'd "see me" at MoCCA in a comment left on The Rack.
I contacted Tom Spurgeon after making these connections and Gary Esposito has denied a connection to "Steve Ebbling" and his comments. Tom has given Gary Esposito the benefit of the doubt, but I feel no need to do the same.
It should be noted that I bear no ill-will to Tom or The Comics Reporter. I do not think there's a better site out there for smart, well-written comics coverage and am troubled by the fact that Gary Esposito doesn't value The Comics Reporter enough to admit he's been caught red-handed and disassociate himself from the organization.
If you'd like, please link to this post with the keywords Gary Esposito. This will ensure that Gary Esposito and Google both learn that insulting and harassing somebody who works in web marketing and search engine optimization is not a good idea.
Addendum:
As of the morning of June 27, 2007, this blog is already at the bottom of page 1 when you use Google to search for the term Gary Esposito. That's fast, and I want to thank everyone that's made a link so far.
Frank Kim also pointed this out in comments:
Gary Esposito worked at Penthouse Comix, and expressed negative opinions about its management. "Steve Ebbling" left a disparaging remark on a news item about a new comic book publishing company co-founded by David Elliott, the former publisher of Penthouse Comix.To find out how this all ended, click here.
