Forbes props up frauds in a lot of ways, and one of those is the Forbes Councils.
Forbes Councils are a scheme, where article below Forbes’ normal editorial standards are published by people paying for the privilege.
I don’t read articles from the Forbes Councils. Honestly very few people read them as they are a known shamem. But a lot of stupid SEO myths stem from the Forbes Agency Council, and the entire shitty business model needs to crash and burn.
Here’s a two of the articles I’ve written calling out the Forbes Councils:
Fake Gurus: Welcome to the Online Business Guru Grifter Industrial Complex
This article was first published in Arc Digital on April 29, 2020 prior to the move to Substack. Some of the players in the fake guru space have changed, as have some of the tactics, but much has remained the same. The premise that those I call “fake gurus” pray on people in dark places; tactics like fake reviews, buying media placements, gaming a best selling book on Amazon and the Forbes business model propping up con-artists I feel are largely still true, with at most minor changes in tactics.
How Forbes Monetizes The Frauds They Create
Forbes doesn’t just make money from Ads and subscriptions; they will sell you a chance to write for Forbes. As I showed in the older article, I paid nearly $2,000 to join one of the Forbes Councils.
The primary benefit of joining a Forbes Council is being able to write for Forbes. Forbes Councils are differentiated from the staff writers and contributors. But Forbes (along with other large publications) has already had problems with contributors selling placements.