Troy Dooly, a prominent voice in the MLM blogging world, took money to conceal facts about Zeek Rewards as the scheme collapsed. The Securities and Exchange Commission later fined Dooly after shutting down Zeek Rewards in August 2012. The SEC determined the company was a Ponzi scheme, funded by affiliate payments rather than genuine customer demand.

Dooly, who ran the influential MLM Helpdesk blog, initially expressed skepticism. In December 2011, he wrote about "obvious problems" in Zeek's compensation structure, pointing out clear red flags.

But his coverage changed dramatically. Starting in April 2012, MLM Helpdesk headlines began defending Zeek Rewards. Articles like "Zeek Rewards CEO Paul Burks Clarifies Blockage Of Countries & Deactivation of Affiliates Accounts" and "Zeekler Penny Auction House Numbers Show The Real Story Behind Zeek Rewards" appeared, reading more like company press releases than independent journalism.

The SEC's cease and desist order later explained this shift. From April 2012 through August 2012, Dooly worked as a paid consultant for Rex Venture Group, Zeek's parent company. RVG paid him $6,000 each month. His job was to counter negative press and promote the company.

His contract outlined specific duties. Dooly was to provide "consulting and public relations services," including "responding to negative press about RVG and ZeekRewards." He also agreed to "live reporting from company events," conduct "video chat interviews to promote company, founders, officers, products and culture," and use his platform to "improve public perception." He acted as a paid mouthpiece.

One April 2012 headline proved particularly ironic: "Zeek Rewards And Their Affiliates Seem To Have Been Hit By International Cyber Crime Gangs & Bloggers With Possible Hidden Agendas." Dooly accused other bloggers of secret motivations while keeping his own financial arrangement hidden.

Dooly later acknowledged taking the money. He admitted feeling forced to publish positive coverage to counteract negative reports. This admission came only after the SEC filed its action against him.

His standing in the MLM community made his actions particularly damaging. MLM Helpdesk had credibility. People trusted its reporting. When Dooly switched from skeptic to cheerleader without disclosing his payroll status, he used that trust to keep people invested in a collapsing Ponzi scheme.

The SEC's action sent a clear message to influencers and bloggers covering the MLM industry: accepting money from companies you write about will lead to consequences.