Roger Ver and Jon Matonis pushed aside now that Bitcoin is becoming mainstream

[abbyd]

if you don't like it... fork.

Don't you mean fork off?  JOKE PEOPLE.  For god's sake people stop this trollwar about press reps.

The real war about regulation will start when:
a few top bitcoin devs are quietly asked to make tools that track bitcoin users...
probably not that hard to do (heck, GPL it for all I care)...
and then those tools are used in the first litigations...

There might be some justifications: "because child porn"...
...but ultimately it could end in tears on either side of the fence.

[caveden]

Whose idea was it, for a start? Seriously, who thought that putting a small list of people on bitcoin.org as "press contacts" would be a good idea?

Just remove this damn list from bitcoin.org for fuck sake!

It should have never been created in the first place. Journalists seeking for information should keep doing what they used to do: contacting people like those in the Bitcoin Magazine, in the Bitcoin Foundation, or individuals like Voorhees, Ver and Matonis.

Bitcoin.org should be as neutral as possible. Just expose the technology, that's all. Matonis, Ver and Voorhees are obviously perfect for PR, have been doing it greatly so far. The simple fact that they are not on this list shows how biased the list is. And IMHO bicoin.org should do the most it can to be as unbiased as possible. So, just remove the damn list.


Actually, where is sirius? Is he really OK with this? Does he really believe that Satoshi left him the domain so it could be used like that?

[caveden]

Don't blame the foundation.

It's garzik, gmax, Luke, and saivann.

And they have absolute control over it or what? Why can't all other developers simply "band up" and remove this trouble from bitcoin.org? Why can't sirius do it? I thought he controlled bitcoin.org.

[RodeoX]

I have not forgotten. In fact I see more Of Jon's work than ever.

[Arto]

Actually, where is sirius? Is he really OK with this? Does he really believe that Satoshi left him the domain so it could be used like that?

Sirius can be contacted via the forum's private messaging feature. Thus far, though, it appears that he remains unaware of the present situation.

[Monster Tent]

Why would such hardened statists insert themselves into such an anarchistic project ?  They really dont like you nor understand the word NO just like every other agent of the beast. Why would you say no to your own enslavement they have cookies.

[cypherdoc]

From Jon's latest article :

"The powerful Bitcoin open-source development funnel will begin to suck in greater and greater talent driving applications that will have the broadest overall impact in the payments sphere."

I think we need to be open to the fact that this could mean new core developers as well besides Gavin. Is it likely that we got the perfect set right off the bat?

http://www.americanbanker.com/bankthink/the-elephant-in-the-payments-room-bitcoin-1058703-1.html?zkPrintable=1&nopagination=1

[marcus_of_augustus]

A video clip just came out about the upcoming Bitcoin documentary. Trace Meyer says Silk Road will contribute to a more peaceful world. He is probably correct but that will be seen as extremely radical just like the things Matonis writes about. This is why this exercise is a waste of time. the free market will take care of itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW42PeZVzJc

This is an excellent point refuting the complete basis for excluding Matonis and Ver based on their "radical" postions and highlighting a source of a lot of the consternation on both sides.

The simple fact is BITCOIN IS A RADICAL TECHNOLOGY.

It is impossible to have any spokeperson representing bitcoin and NOT be radical. Excluding bitcoin experts because they were perceived as being radical under the old paradigm is to ignore that these people were leading the charge precisely because they were radical thinkers and therefore early adopters of the new technology. Who better than such people as the spokespersons since these guys are the leading thinkers by definition?

tl;dr

"When things get weird, the weird turn pro!" - Hunter S. Thompson

Unleash the the pros, please.

[Dusty]

[...]
Chamath was born in Sri Lanka, grew up in Canada, and graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Please do not put him on the PR page.  God forbid we have this type of megasuccessful, megasmart person with an impeccable CV representing Bitcoin, spreading the news to people living under economic dictatorships the extremist idea that Bitcoin can make their miserable lives better.  Too political!

I LOLled hard

[aantonop]

bitcoinpresscenter.org, a redesigned fork of the press center, inclusive policy, will launch before monday

[sirius]

I agree it's unjust to hand-pick a small group of "bitcoin representatives" for the press page. The bitcoin-press mailing list is not very democratic or transparent either. I vote for removing it.

How about replacing the interviewee list with a link to the wiki? A wiki page where we can add all volunteers who meet some notability requirements. There should be a short description of the contact's association with bitcoin and a couple links from previous interviews.

Linking the press page to https://bitcoinfoundation.org/contact seems reasonable too.

"Pictures" and "Quotes" sections could be moved to the wiki. "Press coverage" is rather harmless, but maybe unnecessary - reporters shouldn't need help finding bitcoin related news articles. Maybe add a Twitter link?

[Herodes]

It doesn't matter much who's in the 'press section' on the official site. Anyone who wants media attention can start seeking out the media, and the more interviews and appearances anyone gets, the more interested the media will be.

Personally I think both Roger Ver and Jon Matonis are excellent speakers for Bitcoin. They may not be what we term 'politically correct', but it's refreshing to have people thinking outside the politically correct mainstream way of thinking.

[charleshoskinson]

They may not be what we term 'politically correct', but it's refreshing to have people thinking outside the politically correct mainstream way of thinking.

Everyone in this community has to understand that 'politically correct' is always going to be impossible with a currency like bitcoin. It can't be controlled. It can't be regulated. Accounts can't be frozen. Unlimited funds can be loaded to a napkin and stored anywhere in the world for safe keeping. This isn't something any government will be comfortable with.

We should focus on education and evangelism. If we reach a critical mass, then bitcoin becomes like the internet and governments will just have to learn to accept it. I'm not comfortable with a foundation saying we need to beg regulators to write laws to control us. Governments do not make you legitimate, consensus always has.

[cypherdoc]

I agree it's unjust to hand-pick a small group of "bitcoin representatives" for the press page. The bitcoin-press mailing list is not very democratic or transparent either. I vote for removing it.

thanks for showing up.  there is no more vote according to Saivann.  it's really up to you to enforce your ownership of bitcoin.org by taking down the Press Center.  you have our support for that.

How about replacing the interviewee list with a link to the wiki? A wiki page where we can add all volunteers who meet some notability requirements. There should be a short description of the contact's association with bitcoin and a couple links from previous interviews.

that won't work either b/c Luke is the moderator who has demonstrated even less equanimity there as here for the Press Ctr.

Linking the press page to https://bitcoinfoundation.org/contact seems reasonable too.

"Pictures" and "Quotes" sections could be moved to the wiki. "Press coverage" is rather harmless, but maybe unnecessary - reporters shouldn't need help finding bitcoin related news articles. Maybe add a Twitter link?

those might work.

[DeeSome]

It doesn't matter much who's in the 'press section' on the official site. Anyone who wants media attention can start seeking out the media, and the more interviews and appearances anyone gets, the more interested the media will be.

Personally I think both Roger Ver and Jon Matonis are excellent speakers for Bitcoin. They may not be what we term 'politically correct', but it's refreshing to have people thinking outside the politically correct mainstream way of thinking.

Max Keiser has done much for bitcoin and some people would say he's not politically correct or come to that mentally lol.

[jgarzik]

that won't work either b/c Luke is the moderator who has demonstrated even less equanimity there as here for the Press Ctr.

Multiple people agree that luke-jr is very heavy-handed with the wiki.

And I have no objection to any of Sirius' suggestions.

[midnightmagic]

I agree it's unjust to hand-pick a small group of "bitcoin representatives" for the press page. The bitcoin-press mailing list is not very democratic or transparent either. I vote for removing it.

sirius, please reconsider what you've just been lured into doing. You're giving weight to venom, vitriol, and cruelty which is matched in its rhetorical slipperiness only by its sheer determination.

[jgarzik]

I agree it's unjust to hand-pick a small group of "bitcoin representatives" for the press page. The bitcoin-press mailing list is not very democratic or transparent either. I vote for removing it.

sirius, please reconsider what you've just been lured into doing. You're giving weight to venom, vitriol, and cruelty which is matched in its rhetorical slipperiness only by its sheer determination.

Perhaps true, but hey, pointing it to the Bitcoin Foundation seems reasonable.  If other press centers grow organically, maybe just a link.

That moves the press stuff off bitcoin.org at least, which doesn't seem unreasonable.  Many of us have been saying that bitcoin.org should focus more on the open source project and technical aspects.  Let's put those words to the test.  I certainly prefer a more apolitical bitcoin.org myself.

[cypherdoc]

I agree it's unjust to hand-pick a small group of "bitcoin representatives" for the press page. The bitcoin-press mailing list is not very democratic or transparent either. I vote for removing it.

sirius, please reconsider what you've just been lured into doing. You're giving weight to venom, vitriol, and cruelty which is matched in its rhetorical slipperiness only by its sheer determination.

lured into what exactly?

upholding free speech, upholding the concept of a majority, upholding the right to a vote, upholding inclusivity vs. exclusivity?

supporting Roger Ver and Jon Matonis, probably close to the 2 most visible and hard working Bitcoin supporters of the last 4 yrs?

give me a break.

[Herodes]

I certainly prefer a more apolitical bitcoin.org myself.

Supported. Doing that, we could also avoid all this controversy. (at least attempt!  )

I've heard Gavin's suggested that the Foundation should control bitcoin.org as well. Very bad idea if you ask me, the more decentralized it is, the better. I would also not suggest linking to the Foundation website from the bitcoin.org site. As we can see from this thread representatives for the Foundation are largely uninterested in answering valid questions.