The worst possible response. Now not only do they have a thought leader in the space actively turned against them, but now everyone knows. They just gave this story incredible traction.
Not the definition I'm used to either. "influencer" is even too far for my liking. I feel sorry for people that are actually influenced by any of these people
Do you mean that there are other more notable critics of airlines to consider? Or just that you don't approve of him or youtubers in general? Honest question; I can't say I know much about the airline critic scene. For all I know he could be the top guy in the business or just some random dude on youtube.
"Thought leader", along with the phrase "whitepaper", has been diluted to mean almost nothing these days. Companies publish marketing documents and call them "whitepapers" to acquire undeserved legitimacy; same goes for self-proclaimed thought leaders.
To me, a thought leader is someone at the top of a legitimate field and leading the way. Not some guy who was wronged by an airline and spent an epic amount of time crafting a tirade against them.
The Streisand effect is strong.