Remember Daniel Brusilovsky, the 16-year-old startup CEO and TechCrunch contributor with 120,000 Twitter followers? The poor kid just threw it all away for a MacBook Air.

Apparently, Daniel asked for the useless-but-skinny status-computer in exchange for writing a TechCrunch post about an unnamed startup. Now, before we all castigate a 16-year-old, let's note that "asking for shit in exchange for publicity" is incredibly common on the internet. No less an internet legend than Julia Allison will tell you how far "asking for a MacBook Air" can take you. Most flacks know that bloggers are basically fine with bribery—you just have to be discreet about it! And Daniel, on at least one other occasion, apparently did get a computer in exchange for a post.

TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington says he fired Brusilovsky, whom he also keeps calling an "intern." He might've just been part-time (and unpaid?), but he did used to have a much more prestigious-sounding title!

Brusilovsky has admitted to wrongdoing (using the passive construction "a line was crossed," of course—they learn so young!) and apologized. TechCrunch has scrubbed all mention of him from the site.