A tad stale by internet standards, but nonetheless lulzy...
(emphasis below mine)
Oddly, I never saw this mentioned anywhere else.

eBay Security Guards Shun Free Publicity

There was a lot going on at the Santa Clara Convention Center today. We were there for the GlobalFoundries Tech Convention. Two other visible venues were also in progress. The tamer of the two was a regional bridge tournament. That's an old fashioned card game, unrelated to bridging the technology barrier. The other activity which is probably of more interest to our readers was an eBay gathering.

During a break from the GlobalFoundries presentations, we wandered over to the eBay section, thinking we might pick up some info that our readers could enjoy about the popular auction site. The girls at the front desk had no clue what was available, but were personable and at least shared the agenda with us, and an ad for a charity auction taking place. A glitzy Bling Bra was being sold to benefit the Susan G. Komen cause, breast cancer.

Looking down the length of the corridor for possible fodder for a short article, we were attracted by the advertising structures standing in the hallway. Stacked, multi colored cubes reached about six feet high, topped by the well known eBay logo. All this reporter wanted was to snap an on-location shot of the décor. But two adamant security guards, a positively buffed Hunk named Keith and a rather round, formidable, unsmiling, fellow resembling The Incredible Hulk, took their jobs way too seriously. I could not pass the roped barrier to get a photo without the proper "badge". My GlobalFoundries badge with PRESS designation didn't buy me passage for a quick photo.

A couple, however, passed through the security-manned barrier - without a proper badge as far as I could see. I was told that the man had a special notation as an escort for the lady who wore no entrance-providing identification. Hmmm, an escort service operating right under our noses at an eBay convention. That doesn't hold a candle to the Porn Convention that's held down the hall from CES in Las Vegas each year.

In contrast to the WELCOME TO eBAY sign in their lobby, I got a very unwelcome reception when I offered free publicity for their company in the form of press coverage. Thus, I have little to report about their event. I guess their former employee, Meg Whitman, who is running for governor of the State of California on her own dime, doesn't need the company that spawned her notoriety to be friendly to the press. Nowadays, she certainly isn't shunning the press herself in her run against Jerry Brown, who has already held the highest California office once before.

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