New York Times reporter Joe Nocera published the next story under the title “The Pyramid Scheme Problem”:
“I have nothing for you,” said Frank Dorman, a spokesman for the Federal Trade Commission. “Lots of reporters have asked that question. Our final response is, We’re not going to answer it.”
What had I asked that was so sensitive that the F.T.C. wouldn’t respond? I had requested that the agency explain what distinguished an illegal “pyramid scheme” from a legal multilevel marketing company.
What had prompted my question were two recent events. In late August, the F.T.C. had gotten an injunction issued against a multilevel marketing company called Vemma Nutrition, claiming it was in fact a pyramid scheme.
And last week, Fortune magazine published a lengthy story by Roger Parloff about William Ackman’s nearly three-year battle to force