I understand where you're coming from, but the fact is, Xbox shouldn't be expected to respond to every single rumor. They were already planning on doing this exact podcast, they just bumped it up because of the nonsense that exploded.
Looking ahead, I do hope Xbox players stop being quite so anxious about things. Not saying there aren't reasons to have concerns, but Xbox is clearly here to stay as a healthy business.
Not every single rumor needs addressing but some rumors are too pernicious and ill-timed they need to be swatted down immediately.
This was one of them.
How it came to be remains to be seen but coming on the heels of the consolidation layoffs, malicious intent can't be excluded which made the lack of immediate response even more baffling.
It has long been established that MS is just awful on public relations and marketing but this one goes beyond even their previous low.
For an example of good rumor management, look to James Gunn. He is usually quick and concise, often with a single word. "No." "One of the three isn't impossible." "Yes." "Totally made up." "Misrepresented." "Nobody will be cast until the script is finished." It is doubtful he spends even 15 minutes a day on rumor control. And for all we know the channel is vetted by an intern somewhere.
All MS had to do was tweet: "New and recent exclusives will remain exclusive. Newer and more powerful hardware will be announced this fall."
What's so hard about that? They waited two weeks and spent a half hour just to say that?
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram