Managing editor of Clusterstock.com and former editor-in-chief of Dealbreaker.com John Carney was fired by Business Insider's Henry Blodget yesterday.  There is no official word on the reason for his termination.

Two weeks prior, Carney had written an article stating that retailer GameStop Corp [NYSE:GME] "might be an acquisition target," according to "rumors".  The article started off with, "When the rumor began circulating this week," and included a link directed to an article that was written by his colleague that same day, not earlier in the week.  Carney and his writing partner Vince Veneziani persisted with the unsubstantiated rumor, by suggesting that GameStop's Merger and Acquisition lawyers appeared to be preparing for a GameStop buyout.  GameStop stock rose dramatically as a result.

According to his biography, Carney believes that insider trading should be legal (perhaps he also believes that spreading false rumors should be a-ok).  On the  subject of naked short selling, where short sellers bet down stock without actually borrowing any stock, he has actually defended the practice, stating "cracking down on naked short selling would damage shareholders by making the markets less efficient and penalizing the best corporate watchdogs around."

The firing may not have anything to do with spreading rumors or believing that unethical practices should be legal, but nevertheless, it may be a sign that Business Insider is attempting to move back into the world of journalism and away from dangerous false rumor spreading outfits such as dealReporter.com, theflyonthewall.com and writers like John Carney.