[greenshackle2]

I see it as part of the arms race where people find channels or signals for communications they actually care about, then marketers discover they can get more engagement using them, and vomit their noise all over it.

The problem is that the "personal e-mail" signal can be faked cheaply as they have discovered.

I kind of wish e-mail worked such that anyone who isn't in my contact list has to pay me to send me an e-mail. I'm not sure what the right amount is, maybe $1.

EDIT: It's also a kind of tragedy of the commons. If you're the first marketer to fake the signal it will work very well. Once everyone does it, congratulations, you've ruined it for everyone, including people who are not faking it.