https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONSYLZncpPs
Serial is ending this week — but not without a crowdfunding movement test to glom itself onto the podcast ’s popularity first . “ CrowdSolve – CrowdSourcing Adnan ’s Investigation ” is the lucid convergence of online vigilante Department of Justice and mute crowdfunding , and it represent exactly what is ill-timed with cyberspace polish today .
The ultrapopular podcast investigating the 1999 murder of a teenage girl has , of class , already spawned a fever pitch of speculation on Reddit ( 28,000 member atr / serialpodcast ) . Did her X - boyfriend , Adnan Syed , really do it ? CrowdSolve wants $ 50,000 to build up a political platform for armchair police detective .
Even without the dangerous vigilante justice aspect of the project , crowdfunding is speculative occupation . Never mind that crowdsourced reprehensible investigation have gone dreadfully wrong before . Exhibit A , when aReddit witchhuntwrongly place a missing brownish student as the Boston endurance contest hoagy . Never listen that Reddit has engender a hundred confederacy possibility but no new insights into Adnan ’s example . The incessant speculation about people ’s private lives have , if anything , beentoxic to the individuals involved .
( Oh hey , is now a good time to mention that CrowdSolve promises you a conversation with one of Adnan ’s former classmates for just $ 150 ? )
CrowdSolve arrogate it will be good than Reddit , telling TechCrunchthat it ’ll be build “ ground - up to nurture the exploration and expo of criminal investigating in a sheer , tightly monitored mode . ” So far , that seems to be mean building an iPad app . Because why not an iPad app , amirite ?
Interestingly , Reddit itself hasnot taken kindly to CrowdSolve . “ What could potential go wrong ? , ” asks the first comment . Or take this scuttlebutt frommakers_markers , which sends a barb into exactly how CrowdSolve is drop the point of Serial :
If this podcast about how ostensibly arbitrary and unrelated factors can act upon a panel to bear or convict has taught me anything , it ’s that crowdsourcing the accuracy is a bright estimate .
Never mind , as well , that the guys behind CrowdSolve do n’t on the button have any experience with the criminal Justice Department system . Sure , they have nice , slick infographics and quote the Innocence Project ( by the way , here ’s how to give yourmoney to the Innocence Project alternatively ) , but ego - described “ successive entrepreneur ” Colin Heilbut ’s greatest hit to date is a “ impertinent kat feeder . ”
It ’s also worth orient out that the Indiegogo campaign has whippy financial support , mean it pose any money it raises even if it does n’t meet its $ 50,000 goal — or drive home anything as promised .
The biggest advantage for backers of the CrowdSolve campaign really says it all . It has nothing to do with Serial or Adnan — and everything to do with spend a penny money .
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