No, Medium.com is neither censoring nor suppressing crypto

After Google, Facebook and Twitter the biggest blogging platform on the web has now joined the train of banning crypto related blogs and accounts on their websites. Allegedly, some blogs have been deleted from the website. But as of now, it is unclear to what extent Medium has and will exert this approach. Medium is one of the most popular blog hosting websites in the crypto space.

Why Cryptoprojects choose Medium to publish

Even crypto native platforms like Steemit cannot match the traffic that Medium creates. Steemit seems to be the go-to platform for crypto-enthusiasts. But crypto projects that want to create an official and professional appeal most likely will choose Medium to publish their content. As have many of the biggest and most popular crypto projects. And it is obvious why both big and small crypto projects like to post on Medium. It has a large user base, it is simple to use and has a neat design. Also, it’s user base is mostly made up of young people. They seek career, fitness and relationship advice, tips of every kind. The typical medium user seems future orientated, open to innovation and improvement. It is the perfect audience for crypto projects.

Crypto ‘parasites’ have become a problem for Medium – but Medium is not censoring it

In just under 5 minutes you can find crypto projects that have a decent presence on Medium but that have been abandoned recently. There is Centra with about 10 articles each with around 200 – 300 ‘claps’ and almost 1000 followers. Hashcard with slightly fewer numbers and Cartaxi whose presence on the website looks super professional and legitimate. According to deadcoins.com, they are all scams

Still, these blogs have not vanished from Medium. So you really can’t keep the accusation of censorship up. However, scams are of course not a problem of Medium, it’s not a problem of the crypto space in general either. It takes nothing to found both a regular fake company and a fake crypto project (and this is why regulation won’t help address this problem). There is however still a hype around the blockchain and criminal energy uses this hype to its own advantage. So blogs like that of Cartaxi are just a representation of what is going on in the crypto space.

Medium is not acting against crypto, it is acting in the public’s interest

Medium is not censoring or trying to hold down cryptocurrencies. There is no conspiracy against crypto as many people are suggesting. Twitter and Facebook have gone the way that Medium allegedly starts to go. Although Twitter’s CEO, Jack Dorsey is bullish on Bitcoin and Mark Zuckerberg said that he will research blockchain technology profoundly in 2018 after which he might implement it into Facebook as well. Still, they have banned cryptocurrency ads on their website. It is only confined to ads, still, peole try to defame this approach as general censorship against. This shows a deep misunderstanding of what social media is or should be.

Public or private space? Censorship or user-friendliness?

People think social media are public spaces which they are to a certain extent. But of course these public spaces are maintained by private companies which are of course profit-oriented. Many people associate ruthless, selfish and greedy businesses when hearing the word profit-orientation. But the opposite is true and the ban of crypto advertisement is proof of that. They deliberately refrain from huge profits and try to protect their users and customers. They know that they have to satisfy their customers in the long run and that this is more important than short-term profit. Thus, their interest is the public’s interest. Therefore it seems to be a practical solution to ban crypto ads on these websites. Twitter, Facebook and now eventually Medium don’t want to invest time and resources to distinguish legitimate projects from scam attempts, let alone good from bad crypto projects.