In a somewhat surprising but positive development for the crypto space, the Associated Press (AP) has begun exploring use cases of Blockchain for journalism.
In the first move to that effect, the New York-based non-profit has entered into a collaboration with The Civil Media Company (Civil), the crypto start-up trying to leverage its cryptocurrency (CVL) to encourage high-quality journalism in a time where clickbait and shallow coverage runs rampant.
Attention is fast mounting for Civil, which launched its token on August 13th of this year. The crypto startup is building a platform which they hope will streamline access to high-quality content while rewarding producers and weeding out poor journalism.
Shareholder Pressure
Civil believe that one of the main problems in journalism today is the ever increasing pressure to produce clicks and views in the name of ad revenue. It encourages a culture where writers are forced to produce shallow articles and clickbait to wring every penny out of readers that they can.
Nor is that the only problem – that same need for ad revenue leaves media outlets vulnerable to the companies that buy ad space – if a client sees negative coverage of their products, or discussion of scandals involving the company, they can threaten to stop purchasing ad space – and in the name of profit media outlets often buckle to such pressure, journalistic integrity be damned.
Civil seeks to cut advertisers out of the equation by creating an ecosystem where articles are based on the blockchain, with token holders voting on which content is fair and of high quality, with ‘good’ producers being rewarded with CVL tokens.
Not a Publisher
Like Facebook, Civil sees itself not as a publisher, merely a platform on which companies and journalists can publish their content.
The process of token holders voting on content will decide which articles and other content rise to the top. Of course, there is nothing technically speaking to force readers to vote for the ‘best’ or most fair content – it is possible some particular political slant will come to dominate the platform, for example, but Civil believe that as it is the desire for higher quality content that will drive adoption of the platform in the first place, early adopters will strive to protect that vision.
The partnership with AP ensures that a steady stream of news articles will run on the fledgling platform, which should provide ample proof of concept if Civil is to succeed in carving out a place for itself. As part of the collaboration, AP will also be holding a large number of CVL tokens.
