Do as I Say, Not as I Do?

Miami criminal defense lawyer Brian Tannebaum has some questions for self-proclaimed social media expert Adrian Dayton. Brian latches on to some inconsistencies between the things that Adrian says about himself on his website and the record elsewhere on the internet, as well as inconsistencies between the things that Adrian says about himself on his website and what Brian sees as reality:

How can a member of the Bar, with a straight face describe themselves as a rainmaker and an “experienced corporate attorney” with 8 months experience, 2 of which there was no work? And in those first 8 months was he an integral part of one $450 million dollar merger, or was it several $450 million dollar mergers? Which bio is true? Exactly what role did he play and what relevance does it have to teaching lawyers to use twitter? Was he using twitter before the merger? Did twitter get him the merger client? Someone, anyone?

I describe Adrian as a self-proclaimed social media expert, but is there any other sort? Michigan law student Justinian Lane suggests applying the Daubert test to social-media “experts”:

If people are going to not only sell themselves as experts, but try and sell themselves as experts to lawyers, isn’t it fair to expect them to undergo the same scrutiny you’d subject an expert to in a lawsuit?  I know that many of you are probably a little intimidated about social media and technology in general.  So I’ll tell you what: If you’ve got a question or two about social media, shoot me an email.  I am not an expert!  But I’ve been blogging since 2003 and I probably know enough to prevent you from wasting money on someone who hopes to exploit your ignorance.

Justinian lists eight generally-accepted principles of social media (“If any expert disagrees with these principles, he not only would fail Daubert, but fails at the Internet”). The inconsistencies Brian finds in Adrian’s online persona suggest that Adrian doesn’t subscribe to the first of those principles:

Be honest about yourself and your experience.

If someone selling social-media marketing can’t tell his own story truthfully and coherently, why would you pay him to tell yours?

The Twitter Interesting Index

Twitter Interesting Index Calculator v1. “More followers = better” is a delusion. In truth, more interesting = better.

Look for v2, coming soon.