I have a question.
Why does the media consistently get its reporting on bitcoin so wrong, and regurgitate the same talking points about it being predominantly used for criminal activity, that it’s responsible for global warming, and that it’s just a speculative bubble that will eventually die?
Is it just plain ignorance, or is this intentional?
I think for a lot of people it’s hard to disentangle bitcoins roots from how it’s developed.
But I also think crime, and the negative in general, are what media has tended to focus on for a long time, and oftentimes what audiences respond too.
Additionally, journalists are incentivized to investigate, and get big stories exposing bad behavior, so sometime
Coverage can end up slanted towards those stories over the good aspects of certain topics/technologies.
Good editors assign both types of stories.
Welcome to Nostr, Ben! Please take the time to configure a lightning wallet so we can demonstrate appreciation for your content.
It’s funny, because a lot of tech journalists covering bitcoin say they don’t hold any because they want to remain uninvested and “impartial.”
Yet, strangely, they get paid in fiat.
So it’s the same, "If it bleeds, it leads” tactic, which is not about learning and sharing information (journalism) and all about getting clicks and ad revenue (business).
Did I get that right?
That sounded right to me. It must be tough to be stuck in a paradox where you believe that what you are doing to produce emotional responses is somehow investigative journalism. The curtain is thick.
would love if you gave us a little of your story, Ben. i’ve found that nostr lets me be a little more human than usual on the internet.
p.s. set up a lightning wallet so we can give you money.
Interesting take. A lot of bitcoiners are concerned there's a coordinated effort by the media to bash bitcoin. Perhaps that's not the case.
I wonder if you would recieve any pushback from presenting a more nuanced take on what's been going on in the space. I think Alex Gladstein would be a good person to chat with.
Glad to have you on nostr. Welcome 🤙
Thank you for your candor, Ben. It would be nice to see some coverage on how Bitcoin has created hope for so many people around the world, including in the US. The media’s stance on bitcoin has not been credibly neutral based on the coverage so far
C‘mon #[2] — this is serious news, they have deadlines. We’re on on Between two ASICs with #[5] here…
*not
Speaking of which, to #[3] – what’s your take on a social media protocol with no delete function?
Is there a philosophy behind that?
Given current cultural dynamics, I think it would not be great at scale — I think most people when faced with an online mob would want the ability to delete a dumb post.
I think in smaller communities it’s fine, but i’m not sure I fully understand the reason why it’s appealing.
The primary philosophy is the decentralized nature of the protocol itself, IMO. Once you post something, several hundred copies of it exist on relays worldwide, making full deletion a near impossible task.
It does seem to have some interesting side effects, though. What we’ve observed anecdotally here over the past few months is that people tend to post more responsibly given that they have no place to hide.
It does seem like clients could be designed to facilitate a pseudo deletion though, basically just hiding the post, which I think would make a lot of sense.
That’s right, clients can offer that, although it would only work on that particular client. The post won’t be hidden on any other client that hasn’t implemented that feature
Those notes will still be archived on sites like nostr.band where anyone can find and repost them. So, unless there’s a true delete NIP added to the protocol that all relays implement, a delete button only offers false hope.
It’s twofold.
First, what #[5] said, and I’ve said in the past: No delete means taking personal responsibility for your public persona. It’s a good way to deter influencers, scammers, and racists from using it because they can’t go back and purge their timelines.
Second, since we all understand this, we’re not afraid of making forever typos, and we’ve turned that into a meme. We still shitpost a lot, but we think longer about the stuff that matters.
nostr:note1p55m6fsdznewfdrmrc3d9ak6629gh80m3jzrrejjt9w3sh8xfqjssedcn9
I bet most people haven’t put the time to understand it.
it takes a lot of work to figure out that everyone will eventually converge to agree on this path. which is the primary reason it’s the best path.
#[5], “Why does the media consistently get its reporting on bitcoin so wrong, and regurgitate the same talking points about it being predominantly used for criminal activity, that it’s responsible for global warming, and that it’s just a speculative bubble that will eventually die?”
@762a3c15: That's an interesting question. What do you think are some of the reasons behind the media's inaccurate reporting on Bitcoin?
