30s Summary

The article discusses issues of misinformation, censorship, and lack of trust in traditional systems. It observes the increasing calls for restricted free speech to protect against false information and efforts by governments worldwide to control online content. The author argues that the problem lies not in falsehoods themselves, but in the malicious spread of lies, lack of transparency, and the public’s lack of trust in government and social media. Blockchain technology is suggested as a solution, as it provides verifiable systems that support transparency and allows users more control over their online experiences.

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Over the last couple of years, there’s been a big surge in people calling for free speech to be restricted, all in the name of protecting us from false information. Now, the alternative isn’t perfect either – letting everyone judge what’s true for themselves can be messy. However, we think that better online platforms could give people the tools needed to sift through the truth and the lies.

All around the world, governments are trying to control and censor what we see and hear online. The EU has been using its Digital Services Act to control social media, and both Brazil and the EU have threatened social media companies for not censoring certain political voices. Even in the US, the Supreme Court has allowed the government to pressure tech companies, such as Facebook, to remove what they decide is “misinformation”.

Sure, misinformation is a problem. But it’s not really a new thing, right? We’ve always had false information swirling around. Remember when the Iraq War was justified by false claims about weapons of mass destruction? Or back in the 1980s, when thousands of reports about satanic cults abusing kids turned out to be completely unsubstantiated? And let’s not forget all the witch trials from way back when…

The root of the problem isn’t really the falsehoods themselves, it’s more about nasty folks taking advantage of tech to forcefully spread these lies. This is done by creating numerous fake accounts that mimic real people, creating the illusion that there’s a consensus around certain false ideas. On top of that, today’s popular social media platforms don’t make it easy to assess where information is coming from or if it’s legitimate.

Now, to add insult to injury, political figures aren’t exactly the symbols of truth and honesty they’re supposed to be. Public trust in governments is incredibly low. There have been plenty of instances where attempts to censor information have backfired, and official narratives have been disproven. We’ve seen examples of this in both recent politics and health crises, as our leaders have made mistakes in judging what is truth, often with harmful consequences.

So, the big issue we face today is trust, or lack thereof. There’s a real crisis of faith in institutions, social media, and governing bodies. Even if Google, Facebook, and other platforms on the internet managed to moderate content fairly, the lack of transparency will only continue to spur conspiracy theories and cries of bias.

Good news is, blockchain technology could come to the rescue. Blockchain, often referred to as a “trust machine”, doesn’t require faith in central authorities. Instead, it lets you have a peek into open, verifiable systems. It also allows for every piece of content to be traced back to its source, every account to have a transparent history, and no one powerful figure has the ability to manipulate results or bend rules to their liking. It’s no shock that in the wake of growing distrust in traditional forecasting, platforms like Polymarket, which is blockchain-based, became a popular place for election predictions.

Blockchain also enables new forms of verification, like proving that users are real humans, and verifies attributes like residency or professional credentials, all without revealing personal data. In a world where we’re all getting drowned in questionable content, it could give users the ability to filter out persons of interest in a debate or discussion online. It can provide better tools to analyze genuine patterns of behavior and reveal how perspectives vary between certain groups.

Additionally, blockchain allows for third parties to create tools that let users control their online experience and evaluate authenticity for themselves. Rather than being stuck with vague algorithms and restrictive moderation, users can get access to tools to judge information and have real choices in how they do that.

Trust’s becoming a scarce asset these days. As we’re barraged with AI-generated content and clouded platforms, we’re demanding more transparency and authentication from our content. New systems can be crafted to allow us to verify stuff for ourselves, establish participant identities, and help us to find the truth amidst the noise. The tech’s here folks, all that’s left is for us to use it.

Ben Turtel, the founder and CEO of Kazm and an adviser and investor for several startups, is the author of this article. He has a background in AI at Google and contributes regularly to the Cointelegraph Accelerator. For more of his thoughts on technology and philosophy, check out his Twitter, Substack, Linkedin, or LinkTree.

Just a heads up that this article is purely informative and not meant to be legal or investment advice. These are just Ben’s thoughts and don’t necessarily represent the views of Cointelegraph.