Web of Hype and Glory - 1997-06-16
Web of Hype and Glory June 16, 1997,
Some recent SEC enforcement actions show how lucrative Internet stock-pushing can be. One Internet newsletter publisher, Florida-based George Chelekis, was accused by the SEC in February of receiving some $1.1 million in cash, and 275,500 shares of stock, from companies promoted in his Web site without making proper disclosure to subscribers of his widely publicized newsletter, Hot Stocks Review. By contrast, an SEC official observes, Chelekis received only about $37,000 from subscribers over a 14-month period. Chelekis, who neither admitted nor denied the allegations in settling the SEC lawsuit, did not respond to an E-mail to his AOL screen name. He no longer maintains a phone listing for the newsletter, which apparently has ceased operating on the Internet.