We live in a digital age, a time in history where everything is done with a mobile device or computer.
This includes news broadcasting. But with great power comes great responsibility. A responsibility that at times we’ve not known how to handle. What has emerged from this is the birth of a phenomenon that has been haunting us as for a long time:
Fake News
So how can we fight this hysterical monster? Well, with the help of some heroes called fact-checkers. Speaking of which, Coinbase has put on its hero suit. Enter Coinbase Fact Check.
Mitigating The Cycle Of Fake News
The fake news cycle is pretty simple — eliminating it is not.
It all starts with a malicious entity. This agent with a hidden agenda publishes something that seeks to harm either a person or a project. Through bots, they begin to spread these false statements. They create a wide network where they propagate until a real account takes the bait.
Here, fake news increases its exposure exponentially. It can spread from a moderately large account to news sites and even government representatives.
In our decentralized world, fake news is the order of the day. Every day a new conspiracy theory comes out that can potentially overthrow a project.
Coinbase Fact Check: What It Is And How It Works
This is where Coinbase comes in, explaining three of the possible approaches against fake news. The first is a pacifist approach, in which one works behind the scenes to clean up the mess. The second is a fighting one which involves attacking head-on the one who is publishing the fake news.
And the third is the Coinbase approach: publish the truth.
In other words, Coinbase is not looking to antagonize or turn the other cheek. Rather they will simply share the facts, be it positive or negative. We're talking about an approach of complete transparency when they intend to share even the industry's own mistakes to build trust.
Currently, their fact checking is targeting three areas where they review various myths about the crypto community. They have talked about the myth of crypto being used for illicit activities. They also talked about the myth of the energy waste of bitcoin mining. And of course, they have also denied that their executives sold their shares when they got listed on NASDAQ.
While a rather reactive approach, Coinbase hopes to change that soon in order to proactively get ahead of the fake news cycle. While it’s a fairly new project, it appears promising. So stay tuned.
