A far more imposing threat to Craigslist is Connecticut Attorney General Blumenthal, who last year convinced Craigslist to regulate more closely its Erotic Services category, but who resurfaced last month with additional, more sweeping demands. In an open letter, Blumenthal implored Craigslist, among other things, to disallow salacious prostitution-themed search terms, hire staff to monitor for pornographic images and ads, and eliminate the Erotic Services category altogether.
Buckmaster says Craigslist welcomes the "constructive criticism," and confirms that the two sides are in the midst of hashing out a voluntary agreement. But don't expect Craigslist's most popular and controversial category to go away anytime soon.
Gene X. Hwang
Craigslist creator Craig Newmark (left) and CEO Jim Buckmaster are weathering a storm of criticism.
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"We added the Erotic Services category some years ago at the request of users who had been seeing those ads posted throughout our personals and services categories and wanted to see them collected in one space and put behind a warning screen," says Buckmaster. "And having them in one place has allowed them to be monitored more closely, by both our staff and law enforcement."
Others in the online classified-ad trade back Buckmaster's assessment. Carl Ferrer, co-founder of Backpage.com, Village Voice Media's online classified partner, points out that even if Blumenthal's demands were met, it wouldn't safeguard against people posting such ads elsewhere.
"If you eliminate Erotic Services, the content will just migrate to Miscellaneous Services and other categories," Ferrer says. "Then it becomes a whack-a-mole strategy."
There's also no evidence that overall rates of prostitution or murder have increased in correlation with Craigslist's ascent, says Zollman of the AIM Group. "There have always been hookers. There have always been people who sell drugs and other illegal things. But to call these 'Craigslist-related crimes' is no fairer than calling car accidents 'GM-related deaths.'"
Even the Olsons are sympathetic to Newmark. Speaking recently in their Cottage Grove home, family members talk about their disgust with the 48 Hours Mystery episode they'd watched the night before. The show, "Craigslist: Classified for Murder?" nags at Sarah. It hurt her to see a full hour dedicated to bashing a company that's helped her family so much.
"There are evil people out there," says Sarah. "And unfortunately, Craigslist is built for everyday people. And so someone that has ill will, someone psychotic, like Michael Anderson or this medical student, they are going to take it for what it is worth. It's a free tool and they will take advantage of it. And evil people will take advantage of whatever they can."
This past Sunday, about 700 of Katherine Olson's friends and family gathered at Grace Church, a colossal house of worship in Eden Prairie, about 15 miles southwest of Minneapolis. The last time this group had been together was at Katherine's funeral, but this day they eschewed black clothing in favor of pastel-colored spring attire. There were no tears among the congregants, no Kleenexes hastily passed. This was to be a day of celebration.
When it came time to begin, five members of the Olson family took the stage to subdued applause. Trailing behind in a black suit worn over a tieless maroon dress shirt was Craig Newmark. After a brief introduction by Sarah, Newmark approached the podium, grabbed the microphone, and leaned over his prepared remarks.
"I am really, really humbled and really honored to have been invited here today to speak at this tribute to Katherine, extended by the whole Olson family," Newmark told the crowd. "I was personally sickened and horrified when I heard about this tragedy. I started Craigslist around 14 years ago as a way to give back to the community."
Rolf stood behind Newmark, gazing thoughtfully at the crowd.
"Despite the billions of times well-meaning people have helped each other through Craigslist, it's been devastating to see that it can also be used by bad people to take cruel advantage of others and bring a senseless end to a beautiful young life," Newmark continued. "The most recent crime in Boston has been a grim reminder of that."
It became clear he wasn't speaking just on behalf of Katherine, but also on behalf of reason and personal responsibility in the age of the Internet.
"I'm saddened that we met under these circumstances, but I am truly inspired by the Olson family and I extend my love and friendship to them," Newmark concluded. "And I applaud everyone's effort to let Katherine's light continue to shine."
