WBD Guest Policy
As the awareness of The What Bitcoin Did podcast has grown, it has come under increased scrutiny, most evidently from long-term hodlers and technical Bitcoiners. With this comes:
Disagreements over my choice of guests
Disagreements over my choice of questions
Disagreements in how I manage my interviews
Some of the disagreements have turned into harassment and abuse, including attacking my source of income (challenging my sponsors as to why they sponsor my show), accusations against my integrity and so on.
I started What Bitcoin Did to get answers to the questions I was struggling with, to make a show for me, which hopefully would help others. Many people want to get involved with Bitcoin but are not technically proficient and may not understand economics to the level of some of the experts in the space.
If you don’t like my show then there are many other great Bitcoin podcasts out there. I am a huge fan of the work by Stephan Livera, Marty Bent and Matt Odell, and I recommend all these shows to everyone interested in Bitcoin.
Different people react to different content depending on their level of experience or how accessible that content is. I had no plans or expectations on downloads or revenue, but as the show has grown, it has become evident that for some people it has become a valuable resource and I accept this now comes with responsibility.
Portfolio Disclosure
I currently only own Bitcoin.
I also receive some BAT every month which I also convert into Bitcoin.
Sponsor Disclosure
With every sponsor, I am either an active customer or they have a product that I would use.
Editorial Policy
I sympathise massively with the views of Bitcoiners/Bitcoin Maximalists (whichever term you identify with). The longer you have been part of the Bitcoin ecosystem, the more time you have watched and defended Bitcoin from attacks and the more times you have seen scammy and questionable projects come and go.
Still, I recognise the opportunity and scope with Bitcoin as well as maintain an interest in topics close to Bitcoiners, as such, the podcast will focus on two distinct content types:
Bitcoin
Sister topics: censorship, human rights and freedom
Altcoin projects will be covered if there is a clear need to educate the listeners:
Where a specific project may be a risky investment and listeners need to be warned
Where a specific project may complement Bitcoin, for example, Tether
Sponsor Policy
I work hard to recruit sponsors who I think are suitable for my audience but also are supportive of my work. No sponsor has any control over any guest choice but I do get their feedback as to whether they are happy with my work.
I do not accept sponsorships for altcoin projects but will work with companies that do, for example:
I will work with an exchange that lists altcoins if it also has Bitcoin
I will work with a service provider which accepts crypto if Bitcoin is one of them
Unacceptable Behaviour
It is not possible to make everyone happy with my show; this is evident as when I explore certain off-topic subjects for Bitcoin I get a range of responses. I can’t spend all my time on Twitter defending my choice of guests, selection of questions and the points they make on the show.
With each show, I will explore the topics of which the guests are working on and present that information how I see it to my audience. As mentioned, I am not technically or economically proficient, but that does mean I get to ask questions others have.
I will not accept any more of the following:
Directly attack my source of income
False accusations about my incentives
False misrepresentations about my opinions
Use of offensive or aggressive language
Quite frankly it is exhausting defending a position and correcting misrepresentations.
Anyone is welcome to email me, please be respectful. As I mentioned previously, I accept that my show comes with more responsibility as it grows and I welcome constructive criticism.
If Bitcoin can survive Silk Road, Mt. Gox, China ban, SegWit2X and every other attack it has defended in the last ten years, then it can handle my podcast.
Any questions, then please let me know.
Peter