• Cardano and IOG founder Charles Hoskinson spoke about he’s considering acquiring CoinDesk in a Twitter video.
  • Hoskinson opines that “nobody trusts the news anymore” and the institution “dug its own grave.” 
  • Hoskinson remarks that the acquisition price of CoinDesk “does seem to be overpriced” in light of shortcomings and problems stemming from its parent company, DCG.
 

On January 19th, 2023, Cardano (ADA) and IOG founder Charles Hoskinson tweeted a video accompanied by the text, “Buying Coindesk.”

 

The video has accumulated close to 400,000 views within the 24 hours since its publication as Crypto Twitter displays intrigue and concern about the speculative acquisition of the crypto news site, CoinDesk.

Hoskinson talks about getting back the “journalistic integrity” of the media in his video. Should the acquisition transpire, the Cardano Founder’s assertions and convictions of bias would be put to the test due to his personal association with topics of media interest such as IOG.

 

Hoskinson’s Analysis

In his video, Hoskinson expressed his view of the integral flaws present in media outlets, which he outlined as defamatory agendas, lack of verification, bias, financial influence, minority manipulation, and an overall shortage of “journalistic integrity.”

Hoskinson further commented:

“The failure of FTX and the excesses of 2021 really have revealed a need for better journalism. It really has gotten to a point where rank and file everyday people should not trust the news that they read. It’s just simply not honest.”

He notes recent controversies to back his view of the industry, including FTX’s secret funding of The Block crypto news site to “write articles in a certain direction.”

Hoskinson states that he had heard “through the grapevine” that the price for acquiring CoinDesk would be “hovering somewhere around $200 million,” a 400x price increase from when DCG acquired CoinDesk for $500,000 in 2016.

Hoskinson commented on the reported worth of CoinDesk, opining: “at that price point unless the financials are pretty phenomenal, it does seem to be overpriced.” The IOG founder went on to say:

“I hope whoever ends up buying it - if it’s not me - reforms the institution, so it’s a bit more objective and fair.”
 

On the Flipside

  • CoinDesk has proven its journalistic integrity by publishing the initial story that revealed the flaws of FTX despite the associations of its parent company, DCG.
  • Hoskinson believes that credibility, integrity, and veracity need to be restored to the media, regardless of whether he will be acquiring CoinDesk or building a credible news outlet from scratch.
 

Why You Should Care

Charles Hoskinson’s comments on trust and integrity in journalism are reminiscent of the lead-up to the Musk effect at Twitter.

Elon Musk made grand statements about what was wrong at Twitter, but has struggled to instigate meaningful change. Prominently advocating for free speech, Musk swiftly engaged in banning users who mocked him, as well as numerous journalists, against community expectations due to his prior public comments.

DailyCoin hopes that, regardless of who takes the reins at CoinDesk, the values of independent journalism are preserved.