What a terrible blanket statement. In order to compete in this rapidly growing sector, marketing is definitely required. I wouldn't have even heard of some of my favourite projects without marketing, nor would I have eaten that Papa John's pizza the other night...

I guess the issue, like you've raised, is when disingenuous projects use clever marketing techniques to hook people in when there is no actualy substance to their projects, or in some cases, all they're offering is a scam.

That doesn't make marketing a bad thing though. Like anything, a tool in the wrong hands can be a dangerous thing.