Oct 31
Newsweek Busts MySpace Co-Founder Tom Anderson for Faking His Age
October 31, ‘07 — Sydney Morning Herald reporting on Newsweek busting MySpace co-founder & CEO, Tom Anderson, for faking his age.
SMH further reports, “The thirtysomething millionaire who co-founded the popular social networking site MySpace has been outed as an age-faker. Newsweek magazine reports that Tom Anderson was lying about his age since launching the site in 2003.
Anderson’s MySpace profile lists his age as 32. But according to Newsweek, he will in fact turn 37 next week. And that would have made him a 32-year-old when the site launched, not a 27-year-old wunderkind.
The magazine obtained driving licence information, voter registration and telephone service applications which showed Anderson’s birthday as November 8, 1970.”
Jessica Bennett of Newsweek reports, “But it turns out that Tom, who, along with cofounder Chris DeWolfe, made a fortune when News Corp. bought MySpace for $580 million in 2005, may have a secret: his real age. According to public documents obtained by NEWSWEEK—including professional license information, voter registration and utility and telephone service applications—Anderson is five years older than he claims. His online profile currently lists his age as 32, but it appears he was actually born on Nov. 8, 1970, meaning he’ll turn 37 next week, not 33. (Happy birthday, Tom!)
Is it a big deal? Anderson, who has said he was 27 when MySpace launched, built an empire by tapping into the youth market. History might’ve unfolded differently if those first few users had known that the site’s hipster co-architect was already well into his 30s. “Young people don’t want someone their dad’s age running a site they think is cool,” says Pete Cashmore, the founder and editor of Mashable.com, a blog that covers social networking.”