Here's Ev Williams' announcement:
"Upon further reflection, it’s clear that the broken system is ad-driven media on the internet. It simply doesn’t serve people. In fact, it’s not designed to. The vast majority of articles, videos, and other “content” we all consume on a daily basis is paid for — directly or indirectly — by corporations who are funding it in order to advance their goals. And it is measured, amplified, and rewarded based on its ability to do that. Period. As a result, we get…well, what we get. And it’s getting worse."
That's quasi-true but misleading. Content is not "measured . . .and rewarded based on its ability" to advance the goals of the corporations that fund it. Rather, it is measured and rewarded based on its ability to present eyeballs to ads -- and to present behaviors to trackers. The ads themselves do a remarkably shitty job of advancing the goals of the corporations/brands. The primary and driving incentive is to capture (in fact, steal) attention; its the ad platforms' incentive, not (primarily) the advertisers' incentive. The Whether that platform is a publisher or Facebook, as long as the currency is attention and engagement, then advertising will debase content. As M.G. Siegler says here: https://500ish.com/long-medium-b9ddfe2c3a0a#.m27e267lz,
"Link-bait has given way to click-bait which has given way to slideshows which have given way to fake news. While tactics change and evolve over time, they’re all powered by the same thing: a business model predicated around the almighty pageview."
Once publishing (and content) was freed by the internet from geographic restrictions -- once distribution became frictionless and virtually free -- then this cycle became inevitable. Advertising-funded internet-based content inevitably leads to click bait and fake news. (Fake news is just a particularly dangerous variety of click bait.) As Williams says, "it simply doesn't serve people [because] it's not designed to." Medium's retreat may be yet another glaring example of what happens when authors and publishers/brands put their fate in the hands of a platform they don't control. But at least it's in the service of an honourable goal.
Cheers,
tw