Adam Curry is the modern-day Prometheus. His discovery of podcasting and sharing it with the world was as important of a growth as when Prometheus stole fireplace from the gods to present to people. Podcasting has shortly developed into some of the in style methods to speak precious data, utterly disintermediating the CIA-controlled media equipment. Whereas Bitcoin seeks to separate cash and state, podcasting seeks to separate syndicated information organizations and data.
Giving the world podcasting was not sufficient for Curry as he’s now as soon as once more looking for to wrestle management from the gods by permitting people to have interaction in what he coined the “value-for-value economic system” by permitting podcasters to obtain Lightning funds.
The fiat value-for-value economic system is very large. There are instruments like YouTube tremendous chats, PayPal, Patreon, and extra that permit content material creators to obtain immense quantities of worth from their viewers with out having to rely solely on sponsors.
The Bitcoin value-for-value economic system is way smaller, however in my view as a credentialed journalist, considerably extra necessary. The primary value-for-value use of bitcoin was when WikiLeaks was kicked off the fiat fee rails. Exposing battle criminals is likely one of the core duties of journalists, but is an unapproved exercise by the parasitic ruling class. Certainly one of my mottos is journalism dies in compliance, and constructing all the media equipment on prime of methods that depend on permission to function will utterly kill any means for any actual data to be transmitted.
In latest months, by way of the revelations on USAID funding of media, the playbook for the way the media equipment is managed has been laid naked for everybody to see. The methods for controlling and manipulating data are refined and infrequently aren’t obvious. For a lot of media firms to get any notable funding, they should bend the knee to the ruling class, sacrifice any dignity they’ve, and carry out fellatio on people who most likely had shut ties to Jeffrey Epstein. For this reason I left conventional media to kind The Bugle, the world’s premier information company.
There are numerous myths in regards to the establishment of journalism. Many consider that journalists are supposed to inform the reality, carry helpful data to people, and expose wrongdoings. Individuals who consider these myths probably haven’t interacted with many journalists. I’d argue that the establishment of journalism is extra about participating in covert propaganda, hidden behind the quilt (delusion) of getting some ethical excessive floor.
The vast majority of journalists are people who’re mercenaries for whoever can pay them.
Following the trailblazing efforts of Adam Curry and Julian Assange, The Bugle has operated fully off a value-for-value mannequin, utilizing bitcoin as the principle funding mechanism. The product we’re promoting is our content material. We don’t function as a advertising company for firms that try to promote merchandise to our customers, as a result of which means the content material turns into secondary. In an effort to obtain worth out of your customers, you first have to supply one thing precious sufficient.
The problem of going fully Bitcoin is that you’re asking your viewers to wade into the realm of dangerous UX. Lightning has been one of many backbones for monetization for The Bugle as micropayments are nice for customers trying to ship small funds.
Some could declare that instruments like Fountain, Nostr, BTCPay Server, and different instruments that permit content material customers to ship bitcoin to content material creators lack the UX essential to make a distinction. This appears to be the final consensus. “The revolution must have good UX for it to even occur” is, in my view, flawed pondering. The dangerous UX of those platforms permits them to predominantly be occupied by precise revolutionaries and scares away the faint of coronary heart, who discover utilizing their mind even the slightest an impediment so insurmountable that they find yourself watching Netflix as a substitute.
At The Bugle, we aren’t competing with Netflix. We aren’t catering to those that should not have the willingness or capability to assume. We’re catering to the few, the proud, the revolutionaries. In response to our analytics, 90% of our podcast listeners use Fountain. We’re limiting our potential viewers progress by specializing in selling our content material on platforms with poor consumer expertise, however in doing so, we’re concentrating on those who truly matter. The Bugle just isn’t in your boomer father who believes that smoking cigarettes is dangerous for you, believes within the sanctity of establishments, and has loads of opinions on issues he has carried out zero analysis on. No, we’re catering to those that have carried out the proof-of-work and have an opinion that truly issues.
Bitcoin initially had horrible UX and due to this fact was solely utilized by revolutionaries. Those that had been mining 1000’s of bitcoin on the CPUs within the very starting could also be(come) a number of the richest people in human historical past. Satoshi didn’t pause the revolution as a way to first implement good UX. He knew that the NPCs who had been fearful of utilizing command strains would finally come however that to ensure that the undertaking to achieve success, it needed to begin with those that had been keen to wade into the unknown.
Our society lacks private accountability. It lacks accountability. It doesn’t worth the person. It preaches altruism and focuses on the “widespread good”. All of this outcomes from calls for for good UX. Consequently, the weakest (gayest) rise to the highest. Every part relies on a reputation contest decided by the least distinctive amongst us. The thought of getting an actual meritocracy is threatening to those that refuse to really do any work, or who discover it difficult to prepare mind cells for duties aside from superficial pleasure.
I reject these premises. I consider that we are able to construct a precious media firm whereas utilizing dangerous UX. I consider we are able to have extra impression broadly by looking for to solely goal these with the capability to wade into nuance and transcend brain-dead groupthink. My entire life I’ve hungered for content material that has depth and which means. Sitting on the sidelines hoping that another person steps to the plate just isn’t the mindset of somebody who issues. I can’t spend my time making an attempt to persuade silly individuals to not be silly. If I did that, it will be as a result of I don’t worth my time and don’t worth myself. As an alternative, I’ll spend my time making an attempt to encourage the revolutionaries, the doers, the people who find themselves demoralized as a result of they really feel remoted in a sea of mediocrity.
My title is Richard Greaser,
And I’m the John Galt of journalism.
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This piece is an article featured within the newest Print version of Bitcoin Journal, The Lightning Subject. We’re sharing it right here to indicate the concepts explored all through the total subject.
