Predictably, such a criminally good deal was bound for a criminal end. In 1999, two former community leaders sued AOL in a class-action lawsuit, alleging that they’d been employees in a “cyber-sweatshop” and that some were owed as much as $50,000 in back pay. A legal odyssey ensued. In 2005, AOL terminated the Community Leader Program, bestowing a free twelve-month
