Matt McGee wrote a great post on the issue of Google map spam. His whole post shows that Google isn't consistent with their storytelling; on one hand, they won't allow paid links, but on the other, they allow a fake community to manipulate business entries on Google Maps because Google emphasizes a "wiki" format. Meanwhile, this wiki format is gamed and there really is no "community" -- just a bunch of paid spammers who are hijacking legitimate results for their own personal gain.
It's important for Google to acknowledge that all of its properties should be consistently monitored, and Google Maps is no exception.
Indeed, one expresses sentiment that human intervention is always necessary, despite how smart computers seem to appear. It seems that Matt has noticed this, but why isn't Google addressing it?
Forum discussion continues at Sphinn.