The Zuckerberg Washington Post(Graham) and Accel situation is one counter example - Zuckerberg walked away from a handshake deal and I suspect it didn't exactly hurt his reputation.
I dunno, everyone considers him sleazy, underhanded, and not trustworthy. If I had a startup and he came to me and wanted to invest unlimited money into my venture, I would tell him to get the hell out. If the opposite was true, and he had a venture that needed investors, I'd pass and go invest in a company ran by people who actually give a damn.
