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CNBC’s Cadie Thompson went behind the emotionally charged #UBERGATE to understand the effect of senior vice president Emil Michael’s gaffe about “digging up dirt” on journalists with an opposing point of view.

Thompson interviewed a series of experts tracking the situation including Brian Solis.

Here’s an excerpt…

Uber is in hot water with the media again, and it could be a tipping point of sorts for the company.

The ride-sharing app’s latest PR gaffe stems from comments made on Friday by Emil Michael, Uber’s vice president of business.

According to a BuzzFeed report, during a dinner attended by Uber CEO Travis Kalanick and journalists from various media outlets Michael made statements suggesting Uber should hire its own team of journalists to dig up dirt on reporters. His comments were specifically aimed at one reporter, Sarah Lacy, the editor of the tech website PandoDaily, who has been critical of the company.

Michael apologized for his statements on Monday and said he believed the conversation was off the record.

Uber’s aggressive business behavior has earned itself both fans and critics, and some in the industry wonder whether the company will need to do more ensure the public that it’s an ethical company.

“There are things that are said that are emotionally charged of which an apology can only accommodate so much. In this case it could also be interpreted as a vocalization of Uber’s culture and management style and for it to be voiced in front of [CEO Travis Kalanick] communicates this is a way of business for the company,” said Brian Solis, an analyst at Altimeter Group, a San Mateo, California-based firm that researches the impact of new technologies.

“Even though Michael might be the right person for the job, at a time when the company is so publicly scrutinized, it needs more friends than enemies. A change is imminent,” he added.

Michael’s comments come at a time when Uber is being valued at more than $25 billion and while investors might favor the company’s bold business style, they might want the company to tighten the reigns on publicity, Solis said.

“Is it the tipping point? I think the company and employees have tactics that we don’t even know about that are aggressive and controversial and I would expect for an investor who wants a return on a significant series of investments at such a tremendous valuation, those tactics are going to continue, they are just going to be smarter about how they operate and what you know about,” Solis said. The heaps of bad publicity the company has received might also prevent it from being able to develop partnerships and alliances with others in the tech and transportation space, something it desperately needs to succeed in its battle against the taxi industry in the U.S. and around the world, Solis said.

“I’m sure this is not going to help them in any types of political or strategic discussion with other businesses or politicians because this might be viewed as a bit to hot to align with at the moment, a bit too risky,” Solis said.

Read the article in its entirety at CNBC.