I'm not sure about that. This isn't a 'scandal' in the way Uber's treatment of its female engineers is; it's just a driver leaking what was thought to be a private conversation, albeit one that isn't particularly flattering for Travis.

As a passenger, I think I'd be happy to have an example made of a driver who recorded and then published video and audio of a private conversation without consent. I've said and done plenty of things in the back of an Uber/Lyft/taxi that I wouldn't want the whole world to see.

Having issues with Uber's practices is fine, and talking about them publicly is fine—but a driver who makes and leaks illegal recordings is not someone I want to ride with. Throw the book at him, IMO, and frame it as standing up for riders' privacy.

Your reading of Travis strikes me as wildly optimistic.