The blogosphere can suffer form the same malaise as old media in following up a story. The case of Laptopguy and Amir Massoud Tofangsazan has not really been updated since the early days.
   For those who do not remember, ‘Laptopguy’, revealed to be Thomas Sawyer, was an “internet vigilante” who was allegedly ripped off by Tofangsazan, when purchasing off Ebay. The laptop that arrived did not meet Tofangsazan’s claimed specifications, but it did contain a number of personal files, which the buyer promptly posted on a blog.
   A follow-up site that got so much traffic of netizens criticizing both parties (but mostly the seller) posts less and less relevant satirical pictures, but not that much more. We don’t know if the police got far in investigating Tofangsazan, who allegedly ripped off one Debbie McInerney who claimed to have bought an iPod off him.
   It seems it is another passé blogosphere story, and it has not piqued the interest of the mainstream media, either, from which some blogs depended for their news. Sawyer and the follow-up blog appear to be silent on progress, as is Wikipedia. Sawyer himself may have got past his initial dismay as well, and justice may well have been done: the teenage Tofangsazan is unlikely to be employed by anyone who has had contact with the story. If Sawyer wanted to the public to know that Tofangsazan was a scammer, then he succeeded. In June, Sawyer even gave Tofangsazan a way out and requested the money be donated to charity.
   This could be a natural close to the story, until we hear from the parties once more. Posted by Jack Yan, 00:21  permalink

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