Cryptocurrency: Cutthroat Or Cure?
By Melissa Tranfield on ALTCOIN MAGAZINE
Is the mainstream media determined to portray cryptocurrency as a problem rather than a solution?
Firstly, I apologize for my long absence from the digital sphere. I’ve been busy brainstorming and building solutions, rather than reacting, to the constant barrage of negative information we get around cryptocurrency and blockchain. It wasn’t so long ago when all of us die hard blockchain evangelists were bemoaning the lack of consistent, decent and high-quality blockchain journalism in the mainstream media (WIRED, this isn’t directed at you. You’re amazing). And all too often, the media coverage we do manage to get from mainstream media outlets (the Telegraph, in particular) is saturated with a gloomy, pessimistic perspective that undoubtedly has an undesirable influence on newcomers to the community, reading their first article on the ‘risks’ of investing in Bitcoin.
You may have seen the esteemed Anthony Pompliano’s Tweet this weekend, amidst the outcry over the EU election results, proclaiming his delight that Bitcoin has just crossed the $150 billion market cap. ‘Market cap’ in the crypto space is defined as the circulating supply of tokens multiplied by the current price. Therefore, the value of alt-coins in the market will often be dependent on the value, and relationship, between BTC and USD. Whether these two fall or rise in value will cause your cryptocurrency’s market cap, in USD, to fluctuate. But Bitcoin itself is ‘protected’ against those all too common ‘pump and dump’ practices — it’s too expensive to purchase large amounts of Bitcoin for the purpose of driving up its value, and then selling it in large quantities, driving the price down after ‘noobs’ have already bought into it. Therefore, I’ll treat this latest success of Bitcoin with the respect it deserves.
But I digress. Not all can be expected to so readily embark on their research, as I have done here. However, isn’t that the job of the mainstream media — to peel back the guise of falsity, hype, and exaggeration and expose the core truth? And yes, this may sound sanctimonious, but bear with me.
Naivety aside, the role of the mainstream media should be to source, investigate and explain the most relevant facts and stories of our time. And yes, you may point out how misrepresentation, fear mongering and unfounded amplification have been the calling cards of successful journalism for many years, throughout numerous political, social and economic events. In particular, the aims of various mainstream publications (the Guardian, the Times, the Spectator, the Daily Mail, even the Sun) will always be to serve their interests over that of their readers.
However, it’s the Telegraph that I’ve chosen to pick on here. I’m generalizing, but I’d assume that avid readers of the Telegraph’s financial, economic and technology related coverage are likely to be card-carrying capitalists at the very least, and budding institutional investors at most. Perhaps the more fortunate occasionally like to read ‘news’ stories that extol the bad luck of a ‘newbie’ investor. Maybe it makes them feel extra grateful, that they had the benefit of a financial adviser to curb the risk of their cryptocurrency portfolio? The jury is still out on that one.
This article, incidentally, is a Telegraph Premium article, therefore exclusive access to data on the organizations involved is only for the privileged few.
Investors are losing millions a year to cryptocurrency and trading fraud via bogus online brokers in what has been dubbed a “scammers’ paradise”— and the problem is getting worse.
At first glance, this introduction contains nothing more than straight facts, with some adjectives for effect. However, to categorically state that ‘the problem is getting worse’ with no facts to support this initiative is problematic, and ridiculous. Financial scams and trading fraud have been occurring for decades prior to the advent of blockchain and cryptocurrency. Don’t get me wrong — these scams need to be given the media attention required to inform the masses about the risks involved with them. However, excessively demonising cryptocurrency investments and ensuring that the term ‘scam’ is indelibly stamped into the brand identity of crypto is definitely not the way forward.
The media should not be encouraging a fear of crypto, and should not be making newcomers believe that they have no place in the crypto market, whether due to a lack of funds, or a lack of expertise and experience. All of these can be remedied, and engendering fear of cryptocurrency and technological innovation and progression is not the way forward.
This article by the Metro, while detailing more depressing facts and personal encounters with scammers suffered by unsuspecting crypto enthusiasts, contains a lot of helpful information for readers, including tips about how to prevent being scammed, as well as statements from Action Fraud UK and the Financial Conduct Authority on what they’re doing to remedy these situations.
I’m a fan of the Telegraph’s journalism, and impressed with how well researched some of their articles on Bitcoin and the blockchain are (although the fact that all crypto coverage is locked away in Premium may render their hard work worse than useless in educating the majority).
Listen, Telegraph journos/editors: if the Metro can do it well, so can you. Quit demonising, and start dedicating your time to producing proactive, solution-focused pieces on the risks of cryptocurrency. Remember: the successes deserve a shoutout as well as the failures, and it doesn’t all have to be validated by a bank.
