Silk Road forums

Discussion => Silk Road discussion => Topic started by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 03:57 pm

Title: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 03:57 pm
So less than an hour ago I received a private message from a 0 post user who stated she is "researching a programme about Silk Road for BBC Radio."

She goes on to say "I’m really interested in what attracts people to this website. I have read a lot of posts where people say they feel safer buying drugs online and that they like the idea of sellers being held accountable for the quality of the product.

Some people have also written about being attracted to something that is beyond the control of the state."

Now I see this going a few ways so lets brainstorm how we want to proceed before doing anything drastic. I haven't shared her user account or her personal details because I want to go about this rationally.

First, I (and/or others) could speak to her about the website and gather publicity for it. This could mean new customers and vendors which could either improve the quality and availability of products, or invite more scammers and lowlifes.

Second, we could just ignore her. Her BBC radio program (or programme as our friend in the UK calls it) would be fairly lame if she can't use a recorded interview of a vendor or a buyer.

Third, we dance naked in the woods.

Thoughts?

---

Update Dec 15: I decided to reply and consent to an interview.

--

Update Dec 16: The journalist responded via PM with a few questions. She also informed me that the programme will be aired on 5Live.

The questions are about buyer and seller motivation to use Silk Road as well as philosophical reasons for its usage. Nothing about the "deep web", tor, .onion websites, bitcoins etc
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: 1UP of Canada on December 15, 2011, 04:14 pm
Just tell 'em everything you know. Point her to these forums so she can do her own research, and specifically to this thread, so she knows the community is self aware.

My reasoning: no sense keeping quiet about a public forum. The only way to deal with scammers and lowlifes in onionland is to reduce them to statistical insignificance with more average, honest, "normal" people around here.

I wouldn't worry about it too much though. It's unlikely that people who listen to BBC radio are going to be leaping out of their stuffy old armchairs, snuffing their pipes and firing up the PC to download tor. Not exactly the gawker crowd.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: DoubleDx2 on December 15, 2011, 04:17 pm
I pick dance naked in the woods, just as long as we bring some bug spray.


This news report has some quotes in it and they don't really play out the entire idea as being the devil like I thought they would.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmDN42NkkIM
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: supersecretsquirrel on December 15, 2011, 04:40 pm
First, I (and/or others) could speak to her about the website and gather publicity for it. This could mean new customers and vendors which could either improve the quality and availability of products, or invite more scammers and lowlifes.

I don't think we'll see too many new customers and vendors. Talking to media about how you can buy drugs/weapons/sex/botnets with bitcoins on the Internet isn't going to end well. And it would also be bad publicity for Tor. Just my $0.02.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Bumbaclot on December 15, 2011, 05:07 pm
Did she say which BBC radio station it's going to be broadcasted on?

It could be a pretty interesting programme if they talk about it without bias and scare tactics.

As others have said, it won't bring in a noticeable influx of new users - it'll give some people some dinner party conversation but that's about it.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 05:43 pm
I've decided that if a journalist is determined to interview someone on here then there are many worse people than me to answer their questions. I've also done some PR work as an intern at [redacted] so I hope to handle this well.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: supersecretsquirrel on December 15, 2011, 05:59 pm
I've decided that if a journalist is determined to interview someone on here then there are many worse people than me to answer their questions. I've also done some PR work as an intern at [redacted] so I hope to handle this well.

Yeah, I'll give her credit for doing some research and not just messaging the first user she read about. Good luck!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: oppyate on December 15, 2011, 06:55 pm
MaDameBradley, I would be very, very careful with this. While it;s great to imagine it will be a Boom to SR, bear in mind that Today's Media leans towards Negative Bias. Dirty Laundry gets the Ratings. If story is shared with other American media, 20/20 for example...remeber what happened to Michael Jackson. He was interviewed and from that interview he was later prosecuted as a child molester. As result of that Interview, kids started coming forward w accusations. Inside you may feel kinda special about being interviewed by BBC, but I think she should do her own research here on Forums now that she has created her own account.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: CaptainWilly on December 15, 2011, 07:05 pm
She contacted me to. I agree with most of what was said here.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: caspian on December 15, 2011, 07:17 pm
For what it's worth- I found SR via the article on Wired.com a few months back. Now, it's not like I'm a huge buyer yet; I've only made half a dozen or so purchases thus far. But, I def plan on continuing. So, who knows? It could possibly lead to a few more buyers and vendors.

However, the cons of publicity are, well, obvious. So, I'd say, go with option 3. ;)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 07:29 pm
Quote
Just tell 'em everything you know. Point her to these forums so she can do her own research, and specifically to this thread, so she knows the community is self aware.
- this is a joke -right!?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 07:31 pm
Did she say which BBC radio station it's going to be broadcasted on?

It could be a pretty interesting programme if they talk about it without bias and scare tactics.

As others have said, it won't bring in a noticeable influx of new users - it'll give some people some dinner party conversation but that's about it.

- it doesn't fucking matter its the British Broadcasting Corporation
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Variety Jones on December 15, 2011, 07:34 pm
As a news disseminating organization, I'd give the BBC rather higher marks than most top rated organizations elsewhere.

But when it comes to human interest and lifestyle angles, they can suck real fucking bad. Badly.

So my first questions are who is this person, what is their objective for the story, and what have they done before that you can easily access.

No reason they can't supply that information - it's not like they're undercover at Piccadilly Circus - so that anyone so interested in dealing with them has an even chance of it coming out anywhere close to their expectations.

Silk Road is a market running on a hidden service, but it's not a hidden market. It's 100% open to anyone who takes the effort to find it. The vendors and the buyers are anonymous, the site itself is not.

Treating it like some top fucking secret underworld lair that only a few know how to access pisses me off. Google Tor Browser Bundle. Install and run it. Go to http://silkroadvb5piz3r.onion/index.php

I have a harder time getting my pictures off my phone and onto my computer.

Why not give the BBC listeners *that* information, and let them visit and make up their own minds, hmm?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 07:38 pm
Lets send her a hit of acid.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 07:42 pm
...are you all making these wonderful comments to help the BBC because none of you are going to be affected by it being in another continent?!

what good could possibly come out of cooperating with a media giant like the bbc, or are you all attention seekers ?!

how about adding "sponsored by the BBC" to your profiles....or are one of you actually from the bbc ?!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: dictio on December 15, 2011, 07:49 pm
...are you all making these wonderful comments to help the BBC because none of you are going to be affected by it being in another continent?!

what good could possibly come out of cooperating with a media giant like the bbc, or are you all attention seekers ?!

I agree with you. There's nothing good that can come of this. Let them poke and prod and find their own damn story.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 07:51 pm
Yeah man.  After we get some advertisement on the BBC we can move on to some prime-time television commercials, perhaps?  Then maybe a Super Bowl half-time show... Time Square billboards...?  Lets take it to the limit.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 07:52 pm
As I suspected, and CaptainWilly has confirmed, she has contacted multiple individuals to increase her chances of obtaining an interview. The journalist hasn't responded to me yet with the list of questions I requested so who knows if she'll even want to speak with me.

I will say that I don't feel special in any way. In fact, me agreeing to it is closer to damage control than anything else. I will be very careful because I would never do anything that would jeopardize what we have going here.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 07:58 pm
Haha, what could you possibly tell her that she couldn't figure out herself?  This isn't the fucking occult - anybody who spends time here has the chance to learn all there is to know about the place.

Doing an interview sounds like fun to me.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 08:16 pm
....now i also have this PM...as mentioned above.....is this a wind-up ?!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 08:21 pm
Quote
I agree with you. There's nothing good that can come of this. Let them poke and prod and find their own damn story.

Quote
I agree with you. There's nothing good that can come of this. Let them poke and prod and find their own damn story.

- some sense....thanks
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: 18kct on December 15, 2011, 08:23 pm
I would be happy to give an interview!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 08:26 pm
18ckt, you need to update your signature to the new website URL.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 08:39 pm

theres always one isn't there.
don't know when keep it shut.
or say too much.
thats how i've made it so far, knowing what needs to be kept secret.

suppose there's always one who is prepared to tell all.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 08:46 pm
There's no secrets here, man.  We all found this place because it's public...

I say spread the word.  Let's make this place huge.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 08:59 pm
There's no secrets here, man.  We all found this place because it's public...

I say spread the word.  Let's make this place huge.

...no i don't think you get it...you carry on.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 09:07 pm
There's no secrets here, man.  We all found this place because it's public...

I say spread the word.  Let's make this place huge.

...no i don't think you get it...you carry on.

Yeah?  What is it that I don't get?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: wowzers on December 15, 2011, 09:09 pm
This'll end up on Radio4, probably an article on the Magazine section of the BBC website.

It'll be a 'most read', article and the Daily Mail will latch onto it.

There'll be outcry and moral panic from the middle Englanders. I can imagine the headlines: 'The site where YOUR children can buy deadly DRUGS- what every parent should know'.

There'll be questions in parliament. The left will be faux-outraged that the government is doing nothing. Cameron will have to be seen to be doing something about this affront to British values.

On the plus side, this is an ideal time to buy some bitcoins. Their value is gonna rocket just like in June.


Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 15, 2011, 09:13 pm
^^That's the current public opinion of SR.  With a bit more publicity I think more people will see that this is one of the safest places to buy street drugs.

Everyone within the SR community knows this place rules because we can discuss the quality of the products we're buying.  It's about time the outside world gets enlightened on this fact.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: bigsniffer on December 15, 2011, 09:14 pm
Yup, i got the same thing.. I Just deleted it.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 09:15 pm
...thats a likely chain of events...knowing what goes on here.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 09:18 pm
There's no secrets here, man.  We all found this place because it's public...

I say spread the word.  Let's make this place huge.

...no i don't think you get it...you carry on.

Yeah?  What is it that I don't get?

- work it out for yourself i f you not quite there in life.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: wowzers on December 15, 2011, 09:31 pm
Yeah but mambosun, 99% of the non-drug using public have no idea about this site or read about it back in June and forgot all about it as it doesn't really concern them. Remember this isn't gawker or wired, this is the fucking BBC.
British tabloid journalism is a completely different kettle of fish than US news and they'll jump all over this story as they realise the BBC pipped them to reporting it first.

There will be no objective reporting, the public won't formulate their own views. British society on the whole is stupid, uninformed and polarised.
Both right and left both have this 'something must be done' attitude about every facet of life which isn't directly controlled and regulated and legislated against.


I don't think Silk Road should be some sort of secret, closed underground drug club but bad things could come of renewed publicity.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 09:32 pm
This'll end up on Radio4, probably an article on the Magazine section of the BBC website.

It'll be a 'most read', article and the Daily Mail will latch onto it.

There'll be outcry and moral panic from the middle Englanders. I can imagine the headlines: 'The site where YOUR children can buy deadly DRUGS- what every parent should know'.

There'll be questions in parliament. The left will be faux-outraged that the government is doing nothing. Cameron will have to be seen to be doing something about this affront to British values.


= won't be a fair review, or it may seem the interview goes well but the media will exaggerate and overreact, THIS IS NOT HOLLAND !
 
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Dobbs on December 15, 2011, 09:38 pm
Hello,

Sorry to contact you out of the blue like this.

I am researching a programme about Silk Road for BBC Radio.

I’m really interested in what attracts people to this website. I have read a lot of posts where people say they feel safer buying drugs online and that they like the idea of sellers being held accountable for the quality of the product.

Some people have also written about being attracted to something that is beyond the control of the state.

These are things that I would like to understand more about. Obviously I would like to talk to people, in confidence, on the telephone xx (x) xxx xxx xxxx. You could email me at xxxx.xxxxt@bbc.co.uk. If you are uncomfortable with that we could communicate on private message on this site.

If you want to check out I am who I say I am you can Google my mail address. You will see that I’m disabled and you can get an idea of some of the programmes I’ve worked on.

Best wishes and thanks for your help.
xxxx.xxxxtt
+ xx (x) xxx xxx xxxx

Does this person seriously thing we are going to contact them?  It would be suicide, your ass will be arrested ASAP and you will be "pressured" into revealing all.   GMAIL????  lol...and what does disability have to do with anything?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: dunk on December 15, 2011, 09:44 pm
Yeah, I wouldn't touch this with a ten foot pole, assuming they even are who they say they are. Could just be a troll. I can't imagine any good coming from this.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 09:49 pm
- since the british government still have a lot of influence on what the bbc broadcast etc etc (just like any government) the bbc are used to broadcast politically hot-potatoes and i wouldn't trust any broadcaster that still has government connections (obvious)

- also saying they from radio x investigasting / do a report on sounds a bit too inventive, so this is either a wind-up or this is purposely made out to be a non-important item to fill some news time but is actually the start of a full blown investigation. Don't forget the other youtube / "spuiten en slikken" thread here somewhere in the forum where the "presenter" buys drugs with an investigative journalist....etc..search for it.



 
 
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 09:53 pm
Yeah, I wouldn't touch this with a ten foot pole, assuming they even are who they say they are. Could just be a troll. I can't imagine any good coming from this.

- particularly cos this is the UK a reactive culture - monarchy - conservative gov's....., unlike Holland where they have some understanding of the whole issue....

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Dobbs on December 15, 2011, 09:59 pm
Now, if it was NPR maybe...

not even then.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: MarijuanaIsMyMuse on December 15, 2011, 10:32 pm
Man, I'm not feeling the love. I got no PM from the BBC. And I watch Red Dwarf. Guess I'll go smoke a bowl and watch Lister and The Cat. That always cheers me up.

MJMuse
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Sal on December 15, 2011, 10:57 pm
Let me get this straight....on the forums any new vendor or buyer is automatically assumed to be a scammer until proven otherwise, yet someone bursts on the scene claiming to be a BBC journalist and nobody is skeptical?  For all we know it's just some bored forum troll (KingJoey?) trying to get a response from you lot, and they succeeded.

Blows my mind that someone (LSDirect) can post pictures of LSD, pictures of the test confirming the presence of the LSD, and be backed up by buyer reviews yet still be called a scammer while some supposed journalist flies under the radar?  The only thing more asinine than you all believing this person is actually a BBC journalist is that you'd even consider talking to them.  I prefer that the vendors I deal with NOT talk to international news agencies about their business.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 15, 2011, 11:01 pm
Well I haven't received a followup, and it doesn't seem like anyone else has either. So who knows, maybe she gave up.

meh
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 15, 2011, 11:04 pm
...its 11pm.?!


Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: dictio on December 15, 2011, 11:09 pm
Let me get this straight....on the forums any new vendor or buyer is automatically assumed to be a scammer until proven otherwise, yet someone bursts on the scene claiming to be a BBC journalist and nobody is skeptical?  For all we know it's just some bored forum troll (KingJoey?) trying to get a response from you lot, and they succeeded.

Blows my mind that someone (LSDirect) can post pictures of LSD, pictures of the test confirming the presence of the LSD, and be backed up by buyer reviews yet still be called a scammer while some supposed journalist flies under the radar?  The only thing more asinine than you all believing this person is actually a BBC journalist is that you'd even consider talking to them.  I prefer that the vendors I deal with NOT talk to international news agencies about their business.

Well that's three who agree this is not a great idea.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Sal on December 15, 2011, 11:13 pm
...its 11pm.?!
It is in UTC.  You can probably change the time zone displayed in your settings, haven't tried yet.  EST is -5 UTC, PST is -8 UTC.

Eg:  If you live in NYC the board time will show as 5 hours ahead, if you live in San Diego it will show as 8 hours ahead.

EDIT:  I successfully changed my timezone by going into Profile and selecting 'Look and Layout' from the 'Modify Profile' dropdown.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: wowzers on December 15, 2011, 11:20 pm
Sal, I think travelling... meant it's 11PM over here in UK so the journalist is probably not doing journalisty things like messaging forum members  :)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: pterodactyl on December 15, 2011, 11:25 pm
They meant the time in the UK is 11pm... GMT.
And just to add my opinion, in theory the BBC is meant to be impartial and un-bias as it's a government organisation which should be aimed at providing information not opinions. However this is Britain and nothing anywhere near this topic goes down well so I think it will just bring unwanted and negative attention to the site.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Hardstyle on December 15, 2011, 11:54 pm
Ya know I bet she sends that out to as many users as possible, and then cherry-picks the "best" answers for her bit.  Meaning she's looking for the most shocking answers that will make her story turn heads. 

As far as the idea of SR gaining publicity, I'm generally against it.  While bitcoins and PGP keeps out most of the scrubs/average joes, I think it's the those amateurs who end up causing the most problems for SR as far as keeping it safe and anonymous go.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: bolovide on December 16, 2011, 12:01 am
Got the same PM, I didn't even think twice about answering it.
I can't believe there are people here who would want to expose SR, Tor, etc. to the general public even worse media outlets!
Things that can too much attention too quickly never turn out well.
Like the saying goes, "This is why we can't have good things!"
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 12:19 am
Got the same PM, I didn't even think twice about answering it.
I can't believe there are people here who would want to expose SR, Tor, etc. to the general public even worse media outlets!
Things that can too much attention too quickly never turn out well.
Like the saying goes, "This is why we can't have good things!"

Ya know I bet she sends that out to as many users as possible, and then cherry-picks the "best" answers for her bit.  Meaning she's looking for the most shocking answers that will make her story turn heads. 

As far as the idea of SR gaining publicity, I'm generally against it.  While bitcoins and PGP keeps out most of the scrubs/average joes, I think it's the those amateurs who end up causing the most problems for SR as far as keeping it safe and anonymous go.
- or put the questions to everyone who sort of agreed to participate.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Dobbs on December 16, 2011, 12:35 am
...its 11pm.?!
It is in UTC.  You can probably change the time zone displayed in your settings, haven't tried yet.  EST is -5 UTC, PST is -8 UTC.

Eg:  If you live in NYC the board time will show as 5 hours ahead, if you live in San Diego it will show as 8 hours ahead.

EDIT:  I successfully changed my timezone by going into Profile and selecting 'Look and Layout' from the 'Modify Profile' dropdown.


How does it know where we are?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Sal on December 16, 2011, 12:39 am
Sal, I think travelling... meant it's 11PM over here in UK so the journalist is probably not doing journalisty things like messaging forum members  :)

They meant the time in the UK is 11pm... GMT.
And just to add my opinion, in theory the BBC is meant to be impartial and un-bias as it's a government organisation which should be aimed at providing information not opinions. However this is Britain and nothing anywhere near this topic goes down well so I think it will just bring unwanted and negative attention to the site.

Oh wow, yes that is infinitely more likely than my initial understanding.  Yeah, 11PM is weird for doing work, who wants to work off hours?  This whole fiasco makes me want to create an account as a "DEA Agent" and send random PMs out to see who is gullible, but that would be very time consuming.

"This is Special Agent Cory Trevor, you've been identified as a recipient of illicit substances in a controlled delivery.  Forfeit all remaining bitcoins immediately and you will receive a reduced sentence."
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: towelie on December 16, 2011, 12:40 am
Don't talk to Journo's fer crissake.

If they really want to talk, refer them/her to SR admin.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: dothisthing on December 16, 2011, 01:28 am
A lot of people have said this is a bad idea but no one has explained why it is a bad idea, for someone that can articulate themselves properly, to tell her information she could easily obtain by reading the forums and hanging out. 

TimeTraveller and others, why is it a bad idea to provide her information that she could gather on her own?

If she is a reporter asking questions it is inevitable that this interesting segment will get written, you might just make it harder. If you want the world to see recreational drug users like the regular people they are wouldn't acting like a regular person be a good start?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: demsone on December 16, 2011, 01:29 am
Well i only found out about SR after an article about it appeared in one of this countries biggest newspapers. But the article was buried inside the Tech section.

I would think it's not in the best interest of the media to name the site nor TOR as that will expose it to a whole heap of people which will make it even bigger to bust more people.

And like most things in the 21st Century it's really hard to hide as it takes 1 or 2 people to expose this place to the media if they felt they have been scammed by a SR vendor.

So let her do her story. I am buying more BTC in preparation of the influx of new people.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: dothisthing on December 16, 2011, 01:33 am
Let me get this straight....on the forums any new vendor or buyer is automatically assumed to be a scammer until proven otherwise, yet someone bursts on the scene claiming to be a BBC journalist and nobody is skeptical?  For all we know it's just some bored forum troll (KingJoey?) trying to get a response from you lot, and they succeeded.

Blows my mind that someone (LSDirect) can post pictures of LSD, pictures of the test confirming the presence of the LSD, and be backed up by buyer reviews yet still be called a scammer while some supposed journalist flies under the radar?  The only thing more asinine than you all believing this person is actually a BBC journalist is that you'd even consider talking to them.  I prefer that the vendors I deal with NOT talk to international news agencies about their business.

The difference is that even if it is fake it is still an interesting conversation to have for when this inevitably does happen.
Also she is not trying to steal anyone's money.
(And KingJoey/Advanced Logic doesn't know how 2 write and never knows which 2 2 use when he writes 2).
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 16, 2011, 01:38 am
Guys, just take a look at the wikipedia article on Silk Road: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road_(marketplace)

US Senators know about it, as does the DEA, it was even brought up during the recent SOPA hearings. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if the journalist heard of SR through that. It even has the .onion address and a note that it requries tor. It's not exactly hidden.

And may I remind everyone that the reason the value of bitcoin has spiked in the past has been due to exposure on Silk Road?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: MrDdroMcGillacutty on December 16, 2011, 02:08 am
Politely decline ALL media and carry on as usual.  8) Incognito.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: oppyate on December 16, 2011, 02:21 am
I have the very same message that was cut/pasted and sent to others. Those of you who wish to give your Written Confessions, how your doing drugs cause your weird ass Uncle Molested you and even do a few tears here and there to add some special Drama to your Life..go ahead!
MrDdroMcGillacutty had it right. Regardless of what you all may think, there is a Pecking Order here that's earned..have you been scammed yet? Do You know what to do if your asked to sign? etc...I'm sure SR has a REPRESENTATIVE that will know what to say and what Not to say.

Tell this "Lizard" Lady/person to contact SR Directly! It's not my Order, I just want No Part of offering un-necessary, un-needed Noise that will stir Shit up!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Dopeboy on December 16, 2011, 03:19 am
If you want the world to see recreational drug users like the regular people they are wouldn't acting like a regular person be a good start?
EXACTLY! If you behave as if you're a child doing something bad then you're just reinforcing Big Brother's desire to treat you like a child who is doing something bad.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Sal on December 16, 2011, 03:47 am
If you want the world to see recreational drug users like the regular people they are wouldn't acting like a regular person be a good start?
EXACTLY! If you behave as if you're a child doing something bad then you're just reinforcing Big Brother's desire to treat you like a child who is doing something bad.

In the eyes of the law things like drug possession, distribution, trafficking, money laundering, etc. ARE bad things.  It doesn't matter if they are morally wrong or not, they are legally wrong and it would be foolish to discuss illegal happenings on the record with anyone, let alone the fucking press.  If they really are a journalist, let them put in work and do some investigative journalism on their own.  Some of you won't see this as a bad idea until the interview is presented as evidence in your trial I suppose. 

For all you know, instead of the likelihood that this "journalist" is a harmless troll, they could be a LE agent fishing for information.  It would be naive to assume there are no LE agents lurking about SR and the forums here.  For all we know LEOs have infiltrated much higher in the food chain around here than anticipated.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: mambosun on December 16, 2011, 03:55 am
Someone should go to a pay phone and call the number.  DO IT!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TOT on December 16, 2011, 04:42 am
With more publicity, and with folks going 'on the record' giving the middle finger to the authorities instead of us minding our own,  I think we'll see a concerted assault on bitcoins and institutions that fund them.

With serious fluctuation in that market, making it more difficult to obtain the credits you need, i hope you buyers have a nice stash saved away for rocky times.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: arutha on December 16, 2011, 05:46 am
I got the same PM...

A few things don't add up. Why use the name Lizard? Odd for a 'professional'. Why mention the disability thing? The english has a couple of odd quirks too.

Well, its clear that there will be some people that reply and some people that don't regardless of what is said in this thread. Lets just make it clear that calling the number or emailing the address will give away your own personal information and be very stupid.

As mentioned, looks like its going to happen anyway, pretty much everything someone gives will just be personal views or public information.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: oppyate on December 16, 2011, 01:44 pm
I'm still of Opinion that SR should be Closed off to a certain extent. I posted this elsewhere, Security I think..It's an Article/Blog on SR Infiltration. Let's say this Lizard person is a bored Troll. Cool. But what if??

copy/pasted from
http://fskrealityguide.blogspot.com/2011/06/silk-road-was-partial-agoristbay.html

Here's how Silk Road operated. You can only access the website via Tor. The only form of money accepted is Bitcoin. There was a seller feedback rating system. You would receive your drugs via mail.

After the article and mainstream media publicity, Silk Road shut itself down to new users. I wonder how many DEA agents are Silk Road users?

Here are the flaws in Silk Road's design:
1.   Tor probably is not secure.
2.   Bitcoin probably is not secure.
3.   You can only trade Anonymously.
4.   It is vulnerable to State infiltration.
5.   There should be both a seller feedback system and a buyer feedback system.
6.   Not every buyer and seller should be visible to each other. You should only see other trustworthy users.
7.   Silk Road itself should be P2P organized, rather than having one central website.
Here's a more detailed explanation.

1. Tor probably is not secure.

I suspect that a large number of Tor exit nodes are run by the NSA/State.

Stories like this one are interesting. Someone runs a Tor exit node. Police raid that person's home, saying he was "downloading child pornography". The person shuts down his Tor exit exit node.

This implies that State thugs are running all the Tor exit nodes. Here's the scam:
1.   See if anyone non-approved is operating a Tor exit node.
2.   Download child pornography via their Tor exit node.
3.   Accuse that person of a crime.
Notice how "child pornography" laws make it illegal for someone to operate a Tor exit node.

With Tor, the "exit nodes" are a vulnerability. If all exit nodes are run by the State, that makes it very easy for State thugs to monitor Tor.

State thugs have the resources to control most Tor nodes. The NSA may have put a backdoor encryption flaw in Tor. Tor is probably untrustworthy. I'm very suspicious. State thugs crack down on anyone running a Tor exit node from their PC.

Another downside of Tor is that Tor is *SLOW*!

I did briefly experiment with Tor. I concluded that it was slow and probably NSA-controlled.

2. Bitcoin is probably not secure.

I already mentioned that I don't like Bitcoin. I'll review the main flaws in Bitcoin.
1.   Every client has a copy of the full monetary base.
2.   Every client gets a copy of every transaction.
3.   Very few people have a Bitcoin client on their PC. State thugs can see who's running Bitcoin, and add them to their "subversive persons" list.
Every client gets a copy of everything! That's like handing your records to the State! All State thugs have to do is run a Bitcoin client, and they get to see what every other Bitcoin user is doing!

Bitcoin seems like an intentionally-flawed design.

I don't like Bitcoin. I would accept bitcoins as payment, only if I could immediately trade them for FRNs or gold or silver.

It was amusing that people accused me of pro-State trolling, for criticizing Bitcoin. Instead of addressing my concerns, they dismissed and ridiculed me. Is Bitcoin secretly run by the State? That is a pretty standard pro-State troll debating tactic, to ridicule someone without addressing their criticism.

I own zero bitcoins. I have no incentive to promote Bitcoin. Suppose you own 1000 bitcoins. Then, you have an incentive to promote Bitcoin. If more people use Bitcoin, then your bitcoins become worth more.

BTW, a simple arbitrage argument says "value of a bitcoin" should be close to "cost of mining". Bitcoins can never be worth more than the cost of mining, because then more people would mine.

If bitcoins were worth less than the cost of mining, then people would stop mining. If I were unethical, I could configure the servers at work to mine bitcoins at no cost to me. In that case, I'd be mining bitcoins at no cost to myself.

However, it is possible for bitcoins to be worth less than the mining cost. As an extreme example, if everyone stopped using bitcoin, then the value would go to zero, even though it would still cost electricity to mine more.

Bitcoins can never be worth more than the cost of mining. They could be worth much less.

3. You can only trade Anonymously.

Silk Road is only useful for Anonymous transactions, especially selling drugs. Silk Road does not facilitate in-person transactions.

You can't do the following on Silk Road:
1.   find a good unlicensed plumber/electrician/doctor
2.   find a good unlicensed restaurant
3.   buy raw milk
4.   trade State paper money for gold (but you probably could use bitcoins)
5.   find an off-the-books job
Silk Road is focused on destructive transactions, mainly drugs, rather than constructive transactions.

I disagree with "Certain drugs should be illegal." However, most drugs are harmful rather than beneficial.

4. Silk Road is vulnerable to State infiltration.

There almost definitely are some DEA agents and undercover police on Silk Road. It'd be pretty easy to buy some LSD and then trace the package back to the source. Also, DEA agents may pose as sellers. Due to State law, if you're in possession of a certain quantity of a drug, you're treated as equivalent a seller.

Once the DEA identifies a high-reputation user, they can say "give us your account as part of a plea bargain". Once a high-trust account is compromised, Silk Road will completely unravel.

5. There should be both a buyer and seller rating system. The buyer needs to trust the seller, to not cheat him. The seller needs to know that the buyer isn't an undercover policeman.

Silk Road has insufficient protection against infiltration by the State.

For example, a better system is "You only get to join Silk Road if an existing user refers you." Even better, the person who refers you pledges to make a payment, if you turn out to be an undercover cop or otherwise break the trading network rules.

6. Not every buyer and seller should be visible to each other. You should only see trustworthy people.

It's much safer if you only see "trusted partners" rather than everyone. There should be a user referral system, where one person says "I promise this person isn't an undercover cop."

Of course, a "user referral system" only works once you have a certain number of users. If you're starting from zero customers, you need to advertise just to get started!

7. Silk Road still is centralized. It's only one server hidden behind Tor. That's a vulnerability.

Another precaution is to decentralize it in P2P fashion, rather than keep everything on one server. You don't get to see all transactions and sale offers, only those of people who trust you.

Also, if Silk Road were decentralized P2P, then they could use their own encryption system rather than Tor. They could use their own internal accounting system rather than Bitcoin. They would allow pay-in and pay-out via any system. For example, you could send someone some bitcoins or mail someone an ounce of gold.

Silk Road seems like a partial implementation of AgoristBay. It's a nice try. It still has some flaws.

Silk Road has been outed by the mainstream media. Undercover State police have probably infiltrated it. If the site operator is smart, the most trustworthy users should move somewhere else and start over. I'd avoid Tor and Bitcoin. I don't trust them.

"AgoristBay" should use its own encryption and accounting system, and not rely on Tor or Bitcoin.

Silk Road was an interesting partial implementation of "AgoristBay". It was outed by the mainstream media, which makes it very risky now. Silk Road has definitely drawn the attention of the State. The most trustworthy Silk Road users should develop a better system and start over.
Posted by FSK at 12:00 PM 

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 02:33 pm
...i tend to agree with bigglesworth's statement.


..this "report" is destined for panorama.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 02:42 pm
With more publicity, and with folks going 'on the record' giving the middle finger to the authorities instead of us minding our own,  I think we'll see a concerted assault on bitcoins and institutions that fund them.

With serious fluctuation in that market, making it more difficult to obtain the credits you need, i hope you buyers have a nice stash saved away for rocky times.

- ...possibly, i don't want to give anyone ideas here how to do that ....but bitcoins is influenced /  swayed by the other currencies, economy...supply and demand.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 02:59 pm
Quote
i got this PM as well. i can't see what being disabled has to do with a story.

- possibly an attempt to prove the identity of the said producer.
- nothing against being disabled, and nothing personal, but anyone could have fished those details from the web.
- there's a gal who covered a story about storm chasers actually in the drivers seat with a camera crew in the back in the USA, chasing cyclones (if thats what americans call them)
  and she was disabled; good program, and she's brave an' all that
  but "GO REPORT ON SOMETHING ELSE MORE IMPORTANT, LIKE WHEN WILL BANKERS BE RETURNING THE MONEY THEY STOLE"


Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: profspudhed on December 16, 2011, 03:35 pm
the media are known for twisting the facts and misinformation, im sure theyll find a way to demonize it and portray it as some sort of horrific evil criminal underground, rather than a community of largely decent responsible people, no one here is "peddled" to, we all came here of our own free will and bought what we bought because we wanted it, usually fully aware of the associated risks with our preferred substances and should you not have that knowledge there are plenty of people here willing to help you out. with the exception of the odd scamming arsehole thats what people here are doing basically, just helping each other out, itd be nice if they just left us alone. people are always going to find ways to get hold of drugs, i did long before SR was ever about, but i have never got the purity, quality or the safety that i get buying here, so the only thing sr has changed really for me is my ability to get clean, quality drugs rather than what i can get my hands on by other means, like legal but very new RCs or "pills" with no description of the contents etc.

havent had any pms myself but if i did i probably wouldnt be replying to them, as i said before the media has a fine record of twisting words, so if anyone does reply be very careful about what you say
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: White Light on December 16, 2011, 05:29 pm
Hello,
Personally I am surprised of the discretion of the medias about Silk Road. In my country just a post on the blog of a newspaper in june, and that's all.

A friend of mine asked me details about SR last week, I thought he wanted to know how it works for his personnal use because he enjoyed the coke I ordered from SR ! But in fact he wanted to get some informations for a friend who works for a TV channel so I just told him he could find those informations by himself.

But I realized SR was a golden subject for reporters : illegal drugs, Internet, public will love this combination ! In my opinion you can prepare yourself to be flood of reports about SR in all kind of medias very soon, just a question of weeks...

WL
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 16, 2011, 05:58 pm
The programme that this interview will be aired is 5Live.

Personally I've never heard of this as I'm not at all familiar with BBC radio. Is this show a big deal in England/UK?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 07:39 pm
The programme that this interview will be aired is 5Live.

Personally I've never heard of this as I'm not at all familiar with BBC radio. Is this show a big deal in England/UK?

...oh, she finally replied to you?

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: keldog09 on December 16, 2011, 08:24 pm
I don't think SR should be "closed off" to the public, but being close to a few journalists myself I would say stay the hell away from this person. Big time media (BBC, ABC, Faux News, etc.) are all manipulated by LE or other dangerous third parties to some extent. I suppose there's nothing wrong with answering opinionated questions (i.e. why do you use SR?), but please, don't give away anything that would even remotely compromise anyone's security.

Most of the people in that business will do anything for a buck. Just keep that in mind.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: madamebradley on December 16, 2011, 09:38 pm
Her questions are about the motivation to use the website, why vendors sell here, is this the manifestation of a visionary ideal or just a new way to procure illicit substances. I provided my opinions and not much more.

I'm inclined to believe that she is a legit journalist.

She asked nothing about how Silk Road is run or anything suspicious at all. It truly seems to be a genuine piece on the motivation of individuals to use this unique service.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 09:45 pm
...from memory ...she asked for a phone call, is that what you did, spoke to her?!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: bestopesto on December 16, 2011, 10:24 pm
I am honestly torn between the idea of promoting more public awareness of SR and attempting to stay out of the lime-lite. It is a double edged sword.

Remember the Utah USA polygamist "Warren Jeffs?" He was around for years doing what he enjoyed and believed in, and not until he appeared on TV, thrusting himself into the lime-lite by publicizing his beliefs, was he pursued and eventually brought down by the authorities. Before he went public, they all knew about him but had many other more important issues to deal with.

There is a distinct line between gaining strength slowly through word-of-mouth and brazenly splashing what you are doing in the public arena. Was in not the June 2011 expose that lead to the fraud resulting in the BitCoin crash?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 16, 2011, 10:54 pm
Quote
I am honestly torn between the idea of promoting more public awareness of SR and attempting to stay out of the lime-lite. It is a double edged sword.

 - promote, i wouldn't advise going out of your way to try convince the masses...bad idea in my opinion...i prefer to keep a low profile cos who
   can you trust....

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: DigitalAlch on December 17, 2011, 12:17 am
Once one person makes the interview thing cool, LEO will have a wonderful way to start getting people. The masquerade as a some foreign reporter, get you to call, message from a personal email, or even just follow a link in your normal browser.  I would tell them to do research here, in a group way. No PM's, no email, no calls. Just open forum messages.

Peace,
DigitalAlch
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: redforeva on December 17, 2011, 12:53 am
I believe we as a groups should be interviewed in a public forum such as this, a thread created. If the reporter wants voice clips we can record them our selves and mask our true voices.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: madamebradley on December 17, 2011, 01:22 am
Let me make it clear. I have NOT spoken to her nor would I ever call or speak to away even remotely related to SR. I won't even touch her e-mail. So far I've sent her one private message prefaced with an insistence that I retain the right to review the material before publication so that I can veto any miscommunication.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 17, 2011, 01:37 am
Quote
These are things that I would like to understand more about. Obviously I would like to talk to people, in confidence, on the telephone 44 (0)208 752 7774. You could email me at kirsteen.knight@bbc.co.uk. If you are uncomfortable with that we could communicate on private message on this site.


...sure thing, an actual phone call would reveal too much...quoted part of her PM above.
 
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Knives on December 17, 2011, 02:38 am
This is in no way a good idea. I doubt this story goes anywhere unless she gets actual responses from a person. There have already been stories on SR so thats been done and theres nothing new there. It sounds like she looking for the "human element" to the story, the faces behind the screen names. Without that i doubt this story goes anywhere. And people who are saying theres nothing new she cant learn from already reading the posts here and using those. Well i highly doubt she could use posts as opinions, there's just no real context to posts; u cant tell for sure if someone is being sarcastic, a troll, or just being stupid. Shes not going to be able to quote random posts from a forum and use those as actual responses. Yes there is a wiki about SR and we know that the government does know about this site but that doesnt mean everyone who could do real damage here knows about it. All we need is a story about SR to come out and have some advocacy group or some D.A.R.E nut cases to start doing research and find out that LE is aware of us and has infact not done anything about it or at least look like its not. This just gives these people even more of a reason to start a huge stink about SR, make it look like LE is not doing its job and is just allowing a site to sell drugs to anyone who has the coin. The pressure for action would just increase like crazy and because there are only a handful of sites like this it would give them even more reason to shut SR down asap, before the idea spreads out of control. No good could come from this.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: moonbear on December 17, 2011, 03:02 am
I think publicity would help SR - I would have never heard of it if I hadn't been searching for it so hard. There are so many people out there who would love this site, but they don't even know it exists.  Getting drugs is hard in my small whitetrash town, and I sympathize for those in similar situations.
I once heard that congress tried contacting the SR administrator once. If they already know it exists, what have you got to lose by getting it in he media a little more?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: lilith2u on December 17, 2011, 03:38 am
OK, so i also was contacted by this woman going by Lizard, I'm sure she's following these threads. anyway she legit as far as who she is, she's part of a a podcast from the UK called "ouch" for disabled ppl??? yeah i don't no? anyway! i told her i would get back to her via forums and let her know after checking her out? my opinion is, I being new for one and also don't think i can talk for a whole community? i will tell her why I'm here but no more. I hate a good thing going away. I really like the community here:) i think the first thing one should say about SR is there is no SR. we are and should be Anonymous! in my humble opinion .....peace
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: bp on December 17, 2011, 03:49 am
I would look at it with the "Ron Paul" model in mind.

The media has done everything it could for the last 30 years to undermine his message and his supporters in every imaginable way.
At every step of the game he quietly stuck to his position......personal liberty and sound economics.
Never in 30 years, even when running for president, has he changed his tune. He HAS had to learn the setup questions for which there are no sound byte answers....(Do you plan to stop beating your wife?) but never has he allowed himself to change his position or be drawn into an animated rant when goaded. (This is particular ammusing in a time when those running against him are scrambling to reinvent themselves...again ") )

This patient strategy has finally put him in a position where all of the eye-rolling (McCain in 08) and "He's crazy" (look how everyone is borrowing from his small government, sound money talk...even though they don't really mean it), and "Ron Who?" tactics no longer work.

The ass-bags hosting "Face the Nation" and "Meet the Press" have finally had to acknowledge his presence, downplaying it and throwing questioned designed to make him look bad to neocons (Face the nation) or to look as though even he doesn't think he has a chance (Meet the press).
He held his own with a coolness that we all here need to learn if ever interviewed.

We need to know EXACTLY what we are for, what is the root of the problem that drives us here instead of Walmart, and be able to articulate this understanding in a way that won't let them rattle us even if they start making mama slurs.

A few dozen of those going public and you will begin to see a very frightened press, DOJ, Congress and President alike. Well, not the president......he will be Ron Paul!

They HAVE to be able to marginalize us, make us look like our average is on par with the lowest crack head. From what I read in here that will be very difficult indeed. We are smart. We just need to stay disciplined under fire and scare the shit out of them.

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: moonbear on December 17, 2011, 04:25 am
If people saw how well organized SR is and how the people get along fine for the most part (at least with the sellers I've dealt with) it may change their opinion of the whole drug community. Change the image from a thug group to a healthy economical society whose members mostly show respect and common courtesy for eachother. Honestly the people I've dealt with on this website seem nicer than most people at my high school. If only the media would accept that fact.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: johnnyfried123 on December 17, 2011, 06:00 am
My humble opinion: When it comes to a black market drug trade, no publicity is good publicity. The more the public becomes aware, the more likely law enforcement is to try and put a halt to it.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: AverageGatsby on December 17, 2011, 06:40 am
Leave SR in the dark, or atleast as dark as it is currently.

I may be wrong, but I think most of the major media pieces were some time ago.

And the shockwaves & tremors from those have passed.

 i.e. increased LE focus (not that there isn't constant presence), newbies who don't read forums or follow proper protocol (then bitch about getting ripped off), mass influx to community = skyrocketing BTC prices....

Who wants any of this?

Not me, and its definitely not good for SR as a whole.


ps no offense BP....but....using Ron Paul as an example is pointless for an international community like SR, when nobody gives a fuck about him in our own country....
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Drone75blackbird on December 17, 2011, 10:02 am
ps no offense BP....but....using Ron Paul as an example is pointless for an international community like SR, when nobody gives a fuck about him in our own country....

Like it or not American politics is world politics. Not to say maybe we (on SR) shouldn't bring him up so much. Just saying that if elected, it would affect you and perhaps you should care or at the least be cognizant of what is going on. Again for better or worse...

Peace
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LesbianRobot on December 17, 2011, 10:55 am
Do not give her an interview, for the sake of everyone here. Fuck BBC and all media propaganda bullshit. We should fight the power, not give them power for fucks sake. We are a community of rebels, not followers and slaves. Unless you want to be just another one of media's sheep then don't do it. Leave us in the dark, where we belong... 8)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 17, 2011, 01:51 pm
 - a response has already been sent to the producer (and it wasn't me)
- at least the questions weren't aimed at anything about how the Tor / SR service works or our access to it etc, but then anyone with enough savy could have filled in
   the missing blanks.

- now is it becoming clearer why i thought ignoring them was a better idea ?!

{i am deliberately leaving out details here as this ends up being info accessed by the public as anyone could sign-up and browse its content}
 
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: mseller on December 17, 2011, 02:25 pm
Media guess how SR is or what is what is good as mine (I guess).
No interview, keep up status quo with all outsiders.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LesbianRobot on December 17, 2011, 03:47 pm
- a response has already been sent to the producer (and it wasn't me)
- at least the questions weren't aimed at anything about how the Tor / SR service works or our access to it etc, but then anyone with enough savy could have filled in
   the missing blanks.

- now is it becoming clearer why i thought ignoring them was a better idea ?!

{i am deliberately leaving out details here as this ends up being info accessed by the public as anyone could sign-up and browse its content}

Wow dude...what a fucking twat, whomever answered the BBC calling for the interview is a fucking selfish, attention whore. wtf man...we should make a pact for anyone talking to the press/media or LE to be fucking banned from SR and this site.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: friendlyoutlaw on December 17, 2011, 08:06 pm
Wow, people are acting like fools...

You realize that the people who run this site absolutely love the publicity?

Who do you think tipped off gawker in the first place?

Silk Road has already been brought up to the DEA by a US Senator (Chuck Schumer). He made a big stink about how it needs to be shut down. There was a bunch of press. And then (I'm assuming), some technical person pulled him aside and pointed out "Hey, there really is nothing we can do to take this site down through official channels...and if there was, we'd be going after the child porn long before the drug users."

After that, there was a near-total media blackout on the issue of Silk Road for a few months. The thought being, if we can't shut it down, at least we can try to keep it from being publicized even further. But the cat is out of the bag. You can't put it back in. This is a known site. Known by law enforcement, known by media, known by politicians, known by scammers...known by fucking wikipedia.

But somehow people are demonizing other people for giving interviews? You realize that there was an article in Rolling Stone about Silk Road a couple of weeks ago?

Some of the people in this community are amazing...very well spoken, intelligent people giving back and building a community. And then there are a bunch of paranoid asshats who think that now that they have arrived, let's stop other people from arriving so that they will be special.

Those people are the "fucking twats", if you ask me.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 17, 2011, 08:20 pm
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ What he said.  8)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LesbianRobot on December 17, 2011, 09:38 pm
 :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X :-X

I will begin and end with a quote from two different people...you can judge all you like but I know where I stand in this battle...

“Some of the press who speak loudly about the freedom of the press are themselves the enemies of freedom. Countless people dare not say a thing because they know it will be picked up and made a song of by the press. That limits freedom.” By: ~Geoffrey Fisher

Dear Big mouthed people, I am speaking my opinion on why we need to stop people from making an even bigger stink about us. Clearly you may not understand that the more people talk about this community the more likely we won't have a community to come back to. There is this thing that the senate does from time to time called "Passing a bill", and one of those "Bills" is for passing laws to shut down "Rogue Websites", if you don't think we are in any danger of losing our special community then you are wrong brother. If there isn't a way for them to shut us down now, they will certainly find a way or they will make a fucking way, we are talking about the government. We face the probability of losing every single fucking day, and this is a "Special" place whether you think so or not, and I am sure everyone here will agree with me when I say that it is special. No paranoia, just truth. Another thing before I go, as far as that comment about people  who aren't "well spoken or intelligent" you are mistaken. Try reading some other posts of mine before you make some stupid ass statement like that. I guess people who use the word twat aren't intelligent, I suppose I haven't given anything to the community here, you are a sad excuse for a "friendlyoutlaw". How about standing up with us, together, as a community citizen and fight the man and the media and the press, how about not conforming and giving in, how about not becoming a fucking sheep. Let me ask you, with all of those 27 posts that you have made and that newbie status of yours (just like mine) how much have you contributed? Have you made donations? Have you made any purchases? Or are you just a fucking forum troll? Yes we want more people to be here, we want our community to grow, we want to be free, we want unity and respect, we want peace, but all of those things could very well be down the tubes...the people who will bring us down are the ones that we do not want here. The people who do not belong here, like LE, press, media...all part of the propaganda machine that will take aim at us and tell the rest of the world how we are terrible scum of the earth, a community of liars, thieves and junkies. We do not want them here, and people like you, who stand up for publicity, press, media, and LE are the same type of people who will bring us down. Those are the same people who do not know how to protect something that is special or sacred. I would love to SR get absolutely huge, unlimited growth, unlimited money...but this will turn into a witch hunt...and those who couldn't control their tongue are the ones who should be at the stake, but instead, they will unknowingly be sponsoring the ones who wish to hurt us. You are a fool to think that the government will not do something about us at some point, whether it is outlawing .onion sites or something to that affect. I am trying to prolong our life, not cut it short by

~LP

Post Script - President Obama just signed the Defense Bill...just one step closer to martial law. If you don't know what I am talking about then you need to go look it up on google. What a crock of shit. Because of this bill we could all be considered terrorists and thrown in prison not to be heard from ever again. WAKE UP EVERYONE. Pull the wool from your eyes.

I suppose our friendlyoutlaw support this bill too...asshat.

One of my most favorite quotes of all time is...
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
By: ~Martin Luther King
But sometimes you just gotta know when to shut your mouth...so shut your mouth Unfriendly Outlaw

And VJ, I know you mean well, but you really shouldn't side with this outlaw douche lol I know you have more brains than that.  :D


 :-X :-X :-X
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: bp on December 17, 2011, 10:02 pm
I'll try not to be offensive but there really is no other way to say it truthfully.
Many of you people are being a bunch of self centered pricks.

"I got mine...so what if the world goes into a gulag based totalitarian nightmare?"

The point I was making was that by QUIETLY, but persistently making our way, not screaming at the top of our lungs and them acting like the worst, most antisocial elements of society, but not being afraid to be known and maintaining an intelligent and articulate presence.....we will reshape public opinion.

Do you know how many people smoke, drink and take whatever their doctor prescribes and their only defense against being labeled every bit as much an addict as anyone here is "Well at least MINE is legal!"? As if that somehow makes any REAL difference.

These are the people we need to reach. Public opinion is MOLDED by people with agendas. We need to do the same.

Who knows. when a critical mass of people begin to think for themselves instead of believe what the :intellectuals...the NEW priests, tell them to believe, we might not only beat the war on drugs, we might beat the war on liberty.

Or we could just let that be someone elses' problem  ::)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: sr2013 on December 17, 2011, 10:13 pm
@friendlyoutlaw i agree with most of what you say, but the thing is everyone's interest differs, which is why this is an endless debate.
Like it was already said, there is this rule with the authorities that the more publicity there is for that sort of things, the more they will need to act against it.
Police work is just a matter of priority in regards with the impact/damage to the public. Once they get thousands of complaints from parents that see there child exposed to SR cause it's so advertised everywhere, they will need to take actions. And we can't be naive enough to think that they can't do anything about it: I'm not sure banning onion addresses is technically possible and i think there will always be a way to bypass such actions cause the very goal of the IP protocol was go past that kind of things, but they can simply harden the controls at post offices. The technology keeps getting better; you may be aware that the ban on liquids in airplanes has been raised for example recently in EU thanks to new scanning technologies.
The thing is, it's a bit selfish but everyone has it's own interest:   
- SR admin: do they get a percentage on the sells? if yes then I agree with you the publicity may be good for them on the short term, although it's a big risk on the long term.
- the buyer who is low on money: he may want some publicity hoping that the prices will go down with competition
- the buyer who isn't low on money: he won't want publicity cause it might increase the risk and he may be very happy as it is
- the seller who isn't selling much may want publicity to have more customers
- the seller who is already overwhelmed has nothing to gain with publicity

So let's not daemonize ppl who want publicity but let's not call the others twats either! :)
Ppl just need to think about what they do/say and what the consequences may be. That said, there's no stopping them from spreading the news if they want to;
On the long run, I think like LesbianRobot that it's best to go safe and keep it as underground as possible; grow slowly, only talk about it to friends... but we can't really expect everyone to act for the greater good, can we?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: friendlyoutlaw on December 17, 2011, 10:41 pm

Dear Big mouthed people, I am speaking my opinion on why we need to stop people from making an even bigger stink about us. Clearly you may not understand that the more people talk about this community the more likely we won't have a community to come back to. There is this thing that the senate does from time to time called "Passing a bill", and one of those "Bills" is for passing laws to shut down "Rogue Websites", if you don't think we are in any danger of losing our special community then you are wrong brother. If there isn't a way for them to shut us down now, they will certainly find a way or they will make a fucking way, we are talking about the government.

Ok, now I understand where you're coming from. You're one of those paranoid people who thinks that the government has some amazing super powers. Like you said, if there isn't a way, they'll just make a fucking way, right? I mean, we're talking about the government! Hell, I bet they're working on a time machine as we speak!

If you understood the technology involved, and what sorts of illegal activities they are currently enabling (the biggest one being child porn), you'd understand that the Silk Road would not be at the top of their priority list to shut down, and you'd also understand that there isn't some magical method to destroy this place.

Quote
We face the probability of losing every single fucking day, and this is a "Special" place whether you think so or not, and I am sure everyone here will agree with me when I say that it is special. No paranoia, just truth.

You're damn right it's special. So what makes you so special that nobody else should know about it?

Quote
Another thing before I go, as far as that comment about people  who aren't "well spoken or intelligent" you are mistaken. Try reading some other posts of mine before you make some stupid ass statement like that.

I think your comments speak for themselves.

Quote
I guess people who use the word twat aren't intelligent, I suppose I haven't given anything to the community here, you are a sad excuse for a "friendlyoutlaw". How about standing up with us, together, as a community citizen and fight the man and the media and the press, how about not conforming and giving in, how about not becoming a fucking sheep.

You ask me to follow a bunch of other people and do what you say in the name of not being a sheep. Oh, the irony.

It's always sad when I see people exhibit "group-think" behavior while attempting to be "non-conforming". I imagine you're one of the people who got a tattoo and dressed differently, so you could fit in with the group who you admired for thumbing their nose at convention.

You seem to take it as a given that the press is the enemy. I do not. I think the press is sometimes an echo-chamber, sometimes a useful mirror for society, and sometimes they're greedy sensationalists. But they aren't inherently evil. If it wasn't for the press, what would be the point of having a demonstration?

The press is merely a tool, which in the right hands is quite powerful.

Quote
Let me ask you, with all of those 27 posts that you have made and that newbie status of yours (just like mine) how much have you contributed? Have you made donations? Have you made any purchases? Or are you just a fucking forum troll?

I've been a member for six months, and made dozens of purchases. I'm not sure why you think I'm a "fucking forum troll". Is that simply because I said something you do not agree with? Or was it because I called you out for antisocial behavior that is wrong-minded and rude, and you feel hurt about being chastised?

Quote
Yes we want more people to be here, we want our community to grow, we want to be free, we want unity and respect, we want peace, but all of those things could very well be down the tubes...the people who will bring us down are the ones that we do not want here.

I couldn't agree more. So stop bringing people down by tossing out insults and attempting to demonize those who do not agree with you.

Quote
The people who do not belong here, like LE, press, media...all part of the propaganda machine that will take aim at us and tell the rest of the world how we are terrible scum of the earth, a community of liars, thieves and junkies. We do not want them here, and people like you, who stand up for publicity, press, media, and LE are the same type of people who will bring us down.

I find it highly amusing that because I don't have a negative view towards people giving interviews, that somehow I am standing up for law enforcement.

See, that's why you're not in the "intelligent, well-spoken" category. You erect straw men and then burn them in effigy.

Quote
Those are the same people who do not know how to protect something that is special or sacred. I would love to SR get absolutely huge, unlimited growth, unlimited money

Really? That seems like a terrible scenario. All I want is for like-minded people to have the opportunity to buy and sell personal amounts of narcotics without exposing themselves to danger. I don't want SR to become Wal-mart. I just don't agree with calling for the ban of somebody who provides an interview about SR.

Do you always take things to their logical extremes?

Quote
...but this will turn into a witch hunt...and those who couldn't control their tongue are the ones who should be at the stake, but instead, they will unknowingly be sponsoring the ones who wish to hurt us. You are a fool to think that the government will not do something about us at some point, whether it is outlawing .onion sites or something to that affect. I am trying to prolong our life, not cut it short by

Outlawing .onion sites. Cute. Next thing you know they're outlaw drugs!

Quote
Post Script - President Obama just signed the Defense Bill...just one step closer to martial law. If you don't know what I am talking about then you need to go look it up on google. What a crock of shit. Because of this bill we could all be considered terrorists and thrown in prison not to be heard from ever again. WAKE UP EVERYONE. Pull the wool from your eyes.

I suppose our friendlyoutlaw support this bill too...asshat.

Martial law? I knew you were one of those weird paranoids. Batten down the hatches! Obama is coming to throw everybody in jail! WAKE UP EVERYONE. CAN'T YOU SEE WHAT I SEE? IT'S SO OBVIOUS TO ME THAT OBAMA IS AN ALIEN SENT FROM RUSSIA TO RUIN OUR COUNTRY SO THE MUSLIMS CAN TAKE OVER!

Quote
One of my most favorite quotes of all time is...
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
By: ~Martin Luther King

I thought you already hit your maximum irony potential for one post, but I guess I was wrong.

I am absolutely loving the fact that you throw that MLK quote at me in response to me rebuking you for your attempt to silence people. Confirms just about every negative thing I've said about you.

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 17, 2011, 11:25 pm
The best fucking thing in the world for me right now is the status quo.

I mean, look around - I have it fucking made in the shade here!

I've been eying up Silk Road since long before Gawker (was Badger Copter on the old forums  ;) ) and was waiting for the market depth to get to the point that I could jump in, which I only did about 6 weeks ago.

And ain't nobody gonna touch me now - not in the seed biz - not if things remain along the path they're currently taking.  No surface web seedbank is going to come down here - they'd have jackboots knocking on their door in hours. Nobody is going to go drop 1/2 mil on seed stock and compete with me head to head, and if they don't drop that kind of cash then they can never compete with me on price and stock on hand for same day shipping.

But I didn't take my retirement fund and invest it in seeds to sell here to make another retirement fund.

I'm here to break the back of prohibition, to make the jack-booted thugs from the DEA roll up their tents and sneak off into the night, and to do what I can to ensure a future where 65 year old MS patients aren't shot by SWAT teams during drug raids because they suspect there was a fucking plant growing in the back room.

I'm here to help create a Silk Road where I have dozens of competitors, all safely hidden from the authorities, and fighting me for every customer and sale.

I'm here to be involved with what's going to become an unstoppable force that can work to break the ties that governments use to bind us.

Hell, I'll pay an extra 5% commission to Silk Road to go towards taking out a full page advertisement in the New York Times (cause when you do that, even CNN covers it - xxx took out a full page ad in the NYT today...) that simply says:


The answer to the drug war: http://silkroadvb5piz3r.onion


Stop all this bullshit talk about don't let the authorities know. Fuck, they know already - every Three Letter Agency out there knows about Silk Road.

And there's not a single fucking thing they can do about it. PGP, tor and bitcoin, they may evolve in the future, but that genie is never going back in the bottle. Every fucking night I say a prayer of thanks to Phil Zimmerman for that - and so should you, cause it's his work that it's all based upon. (And I'll add here that the US government classified Phils work as 'munitions' and made it illegal to pass it on or publish it. What did Phil do? He fucking posted it all over the web, risking arrest for treason to do so! But it's just math, and once it was out there, ain't no going back. We're here today, because Mr. Zimmerman has huge brass balls, and choose widespread publicity over closely held secrets.)

So yeah - the authorities already know - but to break the back of prohibition we have to make sure everyone else knows as well.

More publicity. More customers. More competition. A true free market. No interference possible by supposed 'Authorities'.

And I'm all for that.

And Phil, if you're out there - free cannabis seeds for life, my friend. You're one of my heros.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Rook on December 17, 2011, 11:41 pm
Amen.

If you really want to stick it to the man, shove it in his face.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 18, 2011, 12:57 am
You are a fool to think that the government will not do something about us at some point, whether it is outlawing .onion sites or something to that affect. I am trying to prolong our life, not cut it short by

- esp good point, its what i have been trying to explain the consequence of letting the authorities more than they need to know.

well done LesbianRobot
Quote
I'm here to help create a Silk Road where I have dozens of competitors, all safely hidden from the authorities, and fighting me for every customer and sale.
- its not going to be pleasant and competitive place to be when its flooded by media, LE, people who oppose drug takers, more scammers to deal with...
- you'll have very little choice to allow / disallow who decides to sign up with the wrong intentions.

Quote
Stop all this bullshit talk about don't let the authorities know. Fuck, they know already - every Three Letter Agency out there knows about Silk Road.
- nobody disputes they know about SR, is more an issue of how much they know and the more info everyone supplies them ....same point mentioned above.


 the way i see it, its them against us.


"..Look you wanna play blindman, go walk with the sheppard, me -my eyes are wide fucking open..." - Jules Winfield
"united we stand divided we fall"
"Choose your friends carefully. Your enemies will choose you." - Yasir Arifat
"Know the enemy and know yourself." - Sun Tze "The Art of War"
“A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.” - Proverbs 11:13
"don't shit on your own doorstep"
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: sr2013 on December 18, 2011, 01:01 am
@Variety Jones
tor and bitcoin are rock solid, no debate here. The weaknesses are mail posting and btc exchange for money.
If you think they can't do anything about it, you must lack imagination
In the short term there are a couple of "good" reasons for advertising, but wanting the world to know about SR out of pure brazenry and provocation, however tempting, is not the smart move.
Anyways, I think we'll just have to agree to disagree :)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 18, 2011, 01:20 am
Outlaw .onion sites?

Don't make me laugh, I've got chapped lips!  :-*

Read what I wrote above concerning Zimmerman - the government ALREADY TRIED to outlaw public key cryptography, the basis for PGP, Tor and a foundation of the bitcoin blockchain. Classified it up there with nuclear fucking armaments, which is about as fucking outlawed as it can get.

So TravellingWithoutMoving, you're trying to tell me that in all the Three Letter Government agencies there is no one as smart as you? That as long as we keep real quiet and shit that we can keep them from learning 'more than they need to know'?

Bullshit.

Hey, BBC lady - here's your story.

1) Google 'Tor Browser Bundle'

2) Install it

3) Go to http://silkroadvb5piz3r.onion/index.php (I'd suggest perusing http://dkn255hz262ypmii.onion/index.php first to get a feel for things first.)

Presto, Bob's your fucking Uncle, that's all there is to it.

(And if Uncle Bob suffers from MS, he'll be pleased as punch to boot!)

Why the fuck would anyone in their right mind who frequents this site want to deprive other people of the same opportunity?

Further, to all those nay-sayers clammering to keep things secret, who the fuck are you to deprive other people of the same opportunity?

Oh, it's OK that *you* found out about it - but now you have, you don't want everyone else to find out about it?

Your not being smart, or security wise, or any of the other bullshit I've seen spewed here.

Your being greedy, selfish, close-minded and elitist.

Get the fuck over yourself, and open the doors to everyone.

AND THEN SHOW THEM WHERE THE DOOR IS AT!



**added at the last second because there was another post:
Mail posting is the weak link, but good habits and using different drops is the key - and it's not like it's Pablo Escobar mailing tons at a time - folks are buying eighths of weed and .5grams of coke - lots of small shipments that no way in hell can they ever make a dent in.

The BTC / money exchange problem is more a problem for vendors cashing out, and the smart vendors all have that figured, I assure you.

And as for brazen, why the fuck not?

That's how you force change, not cowering in a corner hoping no one bothers you - you make change by forcing change, and you force change with people. Lots and lots of people.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LesbianRobot on December 18, 2011, 01:27 am
I've completely given up on reaching people Travelling, it really is too bad huh? I guess being stubborn and ignorant also make them complete morons. This debate will go on and on I am sure. And since the friendlyoutlaw has confirmed that I don't know what the hell I am talking about and he is a all knowing jesus type figure I will just keep my stupid mouth shut. Oh well.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 18, 2011, 01:37 am
I've completely given up on reaching people Travelling, it really is too bad huh? I guess being stubborn and ignorant also make them complete morons.

So you are the arbiter of truth and fact, hmm?

You have failed completely to come up with a cogent argument.

Stooping to Ad Hominem attacks just underlines that.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LesbianRobot on December 18, 2011, 01:54 am
VJ, this was never meant to be an attack, after my first post I was immediately chastised for wanting to keep us quiet, and rightfully so, I made an opinion based on someone talking to the press. What would you do if someone told the police that you were buying and selling dope? What would you do if they tipped them off, or tipped off a local newspaper about your drug habit??? It is not fucking cool. Period. There is a reason you don't go tell the police right after you blew a big fat line of coke, and you do not run to the fed when you get a new drug dealer and you finally got to go to his house instead of having your friend go into his house alone and no one else is allowed. We face the fact that what we do is illegal and we take big risks yes. But don't think for a second that if the cops in your area got their hands on a list of people buying and selling a bunch of dope in their area they wouldn't do something about it.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 18, 2011, 02:21 am
See, now we're getting somewhere!

Now, do me a favour, and read your last post - very carefully.

>>What would you do if someone told the police that you were buying and selling dope?

Erm, I'm pretty sure they've figured out we're selling dope here, so I don't see where that's gonna be news to them.

>>What would you do if they tipped them off, or tipped off a local newspaper about your drug habit???

Hey, BBC lady - and any cops reading - I have MS and keep cannabis in my house to treat it. There, saved you the problem.

>>There is a reason you don't go tell the police right after you blew a big fat line of coke, and you do not run to the fed when you get a new drug dealer and you finally got to go to his house instead of having your friend go into his house alone and no one else is allowed.

And bingo!

This part right here, is what this is all about - "you finally got to go to his house instead of having your friend go into his house alone and no one else is allowed"

Thing is, times change, and it's not his house anymore, it's the Silk Road over tor, and anyone is allowed.

I see your mindset, and I understand where it comes from, but you're applying metrics from your life to a new scenario that they just don't apply to.

Anyone who's ever bought drugs knows the cardinal sin is to tell anyone who your dealer is. Smart dealers don't want to meet new people. It's drilled into you as soon as you get into the scene.

It's like the scene in Men in Black where Will Smith is going to work for the first day, and Tommy Lee Jones tells him that all the stuff he's learned so far, doesn't mean Jack shit anymore.

Kinda the same thing here - the old metrics don't apply - hell, they don't NEED to apply.

Can you get your head around that?

If not, where am I losing you at?

Is it simply a case of survival instincts honed IRL flowing over into this situation?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: madamebradley on December 18, 2011, 02:54 am
I've decided that if a journalist is determined to interview someone on here then there are many worse people than me to answer their questions. I've also done some PR work as an intern at [redacted] so I hope to handle this well.

You think too highly of yourself.  Unless the journalist was an idiot or has limited skills like as in "I've also done some PR work" , you gave far more information away than you will ever know.  What becomes of it, who knows unless we never see you post again.   lmfao

Well gosh, now that you mention it I slipped and gave her my social, details to my bank account, and my home address.

No wait, all I did was provide her with a summation of opinions on why people use the Silk Road. I'm sure that'll really bit me in the ass.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 18, 2011, 03:21 am
One thing I think people are forgetting here is that on average, individuals are pretty careful about their own security, which is all that matters here - not what everyone else is doing.

My clients are a perfect example of that.

I've been selling here about six weeks now, though I've been here basically since the beginning.

Do you see any threads about me?

There was one about a month ago, guy posted asking if anyone dealt with me, and it died for lack of responses.

Yet here I am, screaming along and it won't be long till I crack the top 10 for vendors here, and you still won't see a review thread.

That's because my customers face a far different threat model than the other customers on this board. They might be willing to offer an opinion of someone they bought some weed off of, and next week offer another opinion on a RC vendor. So the weed vendor knows he bought RCs, and the RC vendor knows he bought a gram of weed. Not a lot of threat there.

But telling someone you bought seeds - that's a whole 'nother ball of wax. It's not like that gram of weed you bought that was gone by Saturday, nosiree. Nope, someone who bought seeds is pretty much likely to be wanting to grow those things out, and posting a review tells any unscrupulous vendor they've dealt with that now they don't have an address for someone who bought a gram of weed, they now have an address for someone that bought enough seeds to grow pounds of weed.

It also means that for every sale I get, I usually exchange 8 - 10 PM's with my clients - for EVERY order, answering the questions that any other vendor would be asked in a thread. And even more PMs with potential clients who haven't purchased yet. Over 1,600 PMs received and sent last week, and the week before almost as many, and nary a whisper on the forums.

Cause my clients may be stoners, but they're not stupid, and they know the threat model they operate under is different than most customers here, and govern themselves accordingly.

So yeah, I don't have a problem with the press here at all. Sure, they'll twist shit around and make it look evil and bad and decadent, but who cares? For every few people sitting around tsk-tsk'ing over the site, there's gonna be one or two that slip home and google 'tor' and 'silk road' because in this case there is no such thing as bad publicity.

And it won't hurt a soul on these boards.

It's also why I'm dead set against these threads on here calling out buyers by vendors - bringing to the attention of possibly unscrupulous vendors the purchases of clients who's information should remain sacrosanct.

Want to improve security here on the Silk Road?

Instantly ban and freeze the accounts of any vendor who mentions a client without that client first bringing the relationship public. Give the funds to the outed party. Client information, including the fact that they are even a client, is something every vendor should hold in the greatest regard.

Client wants to bitch about a vendor? Got to town, and the vendor can respond.

Vendor outs a client purchase, or even that they are a client, for any reason whatsoever, ban-hammer the ignorant cunt, permanently. Oh hooey, Stan gave me a 4/5, so I'm gonna spread his name around and form a cartel to boycott him. No, what you're doing is debasing the trust your clients gave you, and it's people like that we can do without, not BBC Radio reporters.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: AmberDing on December 18, 2011, 05:45 am
Ok, I'm a first time poster, but everyone has to start somewhere - I've been watching for a while and felt I have something to offer here.

First of all, I'm a buyer not a seller, and I like SR because I favour quality. I'm also from the UK and no doubt like most countries buying face to face is risky unless even if you have good suppliers, and their quality is still variable. SR is not going to reduce the amount I spend, just where I spend it.

I'm also a professional in the IT industry, not that my colleagues know about my bad habits, so I have more to lose. I came across Silk Road recently in a Wired article that mentioned the Gawker link, so checked it out. I'd mention that we run a couple of Tor nodes. providing about 20Mb/sec , so not every point is LEO based. Shame that we cant make a few BTC for so public a service but such is life.

First the BBC researcher - I know a few BBC staff, they employ a lot of freelancers now (although that doesnt mean she isnt full time for 5Live). Radio 5 Live is potentially one of the more liberal stations, an article about SR wouldn't generate much  interest, maybe a few new users, but it might get picked up by the conservative press who will see it as an opportunity to howl about drugs destroying our society. We are talking about the same people who have been making a fuss since cannabis was effectively decriminalised for personal amounts, and they have been merrily ignored for several years.

Don't discount that the disability in question may be MS - some THC based medication is available nowadays but the couple of sufferers I know suggest it is much easier to obtain suitable medication on the black market, might be what brought SR to this researchers attention. Also the BBC like to employ "disabled people", as a publicly funded body they have to demonstrate that they make the effort to be as fair as possible.

Perhaps more usefully, I have a friend who works for the "Foreign Office", but oddly seems to go to work at Thames House, which is some way from the FO - you can work that one out :)  As far as they are concerned 9/11 was the best thing that happened as their funding went stratospheric overnight, but drugs arent their focus. Seems the fundamentalist Islamic groups are the #1 priority and they dont take much funding from the drug trade. The world recession is working in our favour too, small shipments of anything dodgy just arent a priority at the border, the cost required to track a reseller who may not be arrestable even  so means the details get logged and passed onto the local police force, just make sure you arent know to them for the wrong reasons.

I believe that SR tries to keep under the LEO radar, not turning into a bazaar for cartels shipping large amounts of product, then it wont generate too much interest, they all have to demonstrate value for money nowadays. Manchester police had a policy 20 years ago that you had to score enough points (based on drug sales turnover, violence etc) before you qualified for active investigation. I imagine the same is applied by most departments nowadays, why go after people shipping a few thousand pounds of product each month compared to those who import tons at a time. The whole principle behind the site also pretty much restricts it to those of a certain intelligence level, who are unlikely to do anything really stupid that generates news headlines. News articles aren't much good when everyone involved is "anonymous of unknown country".

Please feel free to let me know if I'm doing anything daft :)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 18, 2011, 11:59 am
I've completely given up on reaching people Travelling, it really is too bad huh? I guess being stubborn and ignorant also make them complete morons. This debate will go on and on I am sure. And since the friendlyoutlaw has confirmed that I don't know what the hell I am talking about and he is a all knowing jesus type figure I will just keep my stupid mouth shut. Oh well.

- yip
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 18, 2011, 12:47 pm
Outlaw .onion sites?

Don't make me laugh, I've got chapped lips!  :-*

Read what I wrote above concerning Zimmerman - the government ALREADY TRIED to outlaw public key cryptography, the basis for PGP, Tor and a foundation of the bitcoin blockchain. Classified it up there with nuclear fucking armaments, which is about as fucking outlawed as it can get.

So TravellingWithoutMoving, you're trying to tell me that in all the Three Letter Government agencies there is no one as smart as you? That as long as we keep real quiet and shit that we can keep them from learning 'more than they need to know'?

Bullshit.


- no, thats not the case and you know it. this is not about who's cleverer, read previously posts from everyone -its a chance 'they' will make it more and more difficult
  to trade, ISP's, new "anti-terrorist laws" will all work against us if they really want to close sites like SR down.

- perhaps its knowing when to strike and what is achieves, rubbing their nose in it is aggravation -there is a time and place for everything.

- what are the consequences for your actions ?! How will this affect someone you have never met before ?!

- our end goal should be total freedom to choose to expand our minds (or perhaps enough heroin to kill yourself -that is your choice), this has seemed to be the
  collective view of the likes of Terence Mckenna, Timothy Leary +++. otherwise they would have lived for nothing; or individuals don't share the same ideals -perhaps
  its anarchy that everyone is working towards, or purely here for monetary reasons.

- there is ongoing Tor development and everything else that achieves anonymity, but what use is this if you've handed them your identity on a silver plater.

- otherwise you seem to contribute a fair bit to the forum, so i assume you believe in negotiation and dialog?!

- i'll give you the benefit of the doubt, perhaps you are reckless because of anger.

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: onestopshop on December 19, 2011, 01:04 am
I can't believe there's people out there that would even give this idea a second thought.

All PM's sent to this BBC journalist should be examined if any pertinent information about the site is given out then the member(s) in question should be permanently banned.

This is a underground drug site people...any exposure is BAD EXPOSURE...loose lips sink ships and all that.

Having said all that I'm from UK and I don't think a lot of people will pay attention to a shitty radio station, the main concern is if other outlets pickup on it and we end up with a avalanche effect of bad press and publicity.

I've said it once and I'll say it again...the EXISTING publicity SR has is bad enough, lets not fan the flames any further. You gotta be a fucking idiot if you think your going to change peoples perspectives on drugs and drug users by TALKING TO A BLOODY JOURNALIST.

Recently I've been shocked at the stupidity of posts I've seen on here recently, I thought this place would be a lot more stricter we shouldn't have open registration anymore...invitation only and possibly a IQ test to keep out the bad apples and people with no common sense..

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 19, 2011, 01:15 am
I can't believe there's people out there that would even give this idea a second thought.

All PM's sent to this BBC journalist should be examined if any pertinent information about the site is given out then the member(s) in question should be permanently banned.

- ok
- i think p6 on this thread describes what was sort of asked in the survey, can check with the users who participated i dont know exactly who participated.

thanks for post
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: friendlyoutlaw on December 19, 2011, 03:59 am
I can't believe there's people out there that would even give this idea a second thought.

All PM's sent to this BBC journalist should be examined if any pertinent information about the site is given out then the member(s) in question should be permanently banned.

Might want to go round up everybody on this forum then. Anything and everything pertinent to this site is discussed at great length here.

You should be especially concerned about this thread:

http://dkn255hz262ypmii.onion/index.php?topic=6403.0

It's basically a thread specifically about the questions the BBC lady is asking, and four pages of responses.

Quote
This is a underground drug site people...any exposure is BAD EXPOSURE...loose lips sink ships and all that.

Not really how it works.


Quote
Recently I've been shocked at the stupidity of posts I've seen on here recently, I thought this place would be a lot more stricter we shouldn't have open registration anymore...invitation only and possibly a IQ test to keep out the bad apples and people with no common sense..

Invitation only now that you're here, right?

I'm pretty shocked at the stupidity of the posts recently too...seems we have a lot of selfish, paranoid people who don't understand the technology. Oh well. No skin off my nuts if you run around angry.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: Parasomnia on December 19, 2011, 05:20 am
Lets send her a hit of acid.

hahaha  :D
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 19, 2011, 07:16 pm
Lets send her a hit of acid.

hahaha  :D

..only if she pays for it.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: racidacid on December 19, 2011, 11:54 pm
Sounds dodgy butt :o
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: chino on December 26, 2011, 10:08 pm
The more people that know about sr, the more people that use it. The more people that use it, the more people that buy. The more people that buy, the more sellers that will be. The more sellers maybe other SR will pop up the more sites like this the more difficult for THEM to STOP US.

Thats why SR is a revolution. And by using SR we are part of that revolution. Actually how many comments like i been looking for a place like this for years and now i found it.  I think the scope and importance of SR is masive.

chino
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Christy Nugs on December 27, 2011, 01:33 am
I vote for dancing naked in the woods lol
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on December 27, 2011, 03:39 pm
It's been pretty much two weeks since Ms. BBC started contacting members here.

Has anything come of it yet?

I mean, I notice the sky hasn't fell in or anything.

Has Ms. BBC given any indications as to when anything she's gleaned from here might air?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: madamebradley on December 27, 2011, 04:30 pm
I haven't heard anything from her either. I'll keep everyone appraised should she start communicating again.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 27, 2011, 11:04 pm
The more people that know about sr, the more people that use it. The more people that use it, the more people that buy. The more people that buy, the more sellers that will be. The more sellers maybe other SR will pop up the more sites like this the more difficult for THEM to STOP US.

Thats why SR is a revolution. And by using SR we are part of that revolution. Actually how many comments like i been looking for a place like this for years and now i found it.  I think the scope and importance of SR is masive.

chino

- life and the future of SR won't turn out by your simplistic logic above.
- should SR not advertise in the local papers then?!
- you will have very little choice in who signs up, its like a country's population explosion if left "unmanaged" !
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: moonbear on December 28, 2011, 12:07 am
The more people that know about sr, the more people that use it. The more people that use it, the more people that buy. The more people that buy, the more sellers that will be. The more sellers maybe other SR will pop up the more sites like this the more difficult for THEM to STOP US.

Thats why SR is a revolution. And by using SR we are part of that revolution. Actually how many comments like i been looking for a place like this for years and now i found it.  I think the scope and importance of SR is masive.

chino
- life and the future of SR won't turn out by your simplistic logic above.
- should SR not advertise in the local papers then?!
- you will have very little choice in who signs up, its like a countries population explosion if left "unmanaged" !
I think your right. How new members effect silk road probably depends on where they came from, like how they found out about it. I think that having silk road on the news is advertising to the wrong type of people. Perhaps it would be a better idea to advertise on a drug forum?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: CaptainWilly on December 28, 2011, 01:28 pm
Just for shit's and giggles I might have a friend call her and report back. AARRRGGGGG!!!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: chino on December 29, 2011, 08:24 am
If goes all way public with adds in all the newspapers it will not be a healthy progresion or growth of the customer base in SR it will be to fast for new sellers to come up.
But one video in you tube (that how i hear about it) one day, the next month an article in some newspaper. If is a steady healthy growth i think my simplistic logic works. And one day, who knows maybe the objetive is to force the end of prohibition of drugs in the world and to get most of our individual freedoms back. BLOODY HELL we are in the 21 century and we dont have euthanasia law, we have PROHIBITION in place that is making millions of people suffer phissically and economically. I still thinking that this is a form of revolution, and i love to dance naked in the woods with good company. 
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: 100% American on December 29, 2011, 11:06 am
I think since SR only makes $10,000 a day in fees that we should all do everything we can to attract more customers. He works to hard to just make $10,000 a day.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: chino on December 29, 2011, 09:33 pm
What do you care how much they money they make here. Dont you pay anywhere for services that companies provide you? Here is the same thing they provide us with a service,  they spend time and resources to run it. And as a bonus add it,  they may risk their freedom for it. So do you think your freedom is worth 10000$ a day?. You can sell drugs in the corner and make 10000 dollars a day is a very good profit.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on December 29, 2011, 11:06 pm
...anyone in the last few posts agree with the free advertising, the journalist's phone no is somewhere in the begin of this thread, give her a call....along with your cooperation don't forget to give your real name, contact details and anything the local authorities may be interested in, hell...there may even be a live radio or television
program opportunity -you could be famous....again don't forget to use your name not ours {you're on your own..}

Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: chino on December 30, 2011, 01:49 am
...anyone in the last few posts agree with the free advertising, the journalist's phone no is somewhere in the begin of this thread, give her a call....along with your cooperation don't forget to give your real name, contact details and anything the local authorities may be interested in, hell...there may even be a live radio or television
program opportunity -you could be famous....again don't forget to use your name not ours {you're on your own..}

Ja, Ja

I leave a quiet live.... the wife screaming, crazy kids, my dog shitting everywhere. Sorry no involment with media. In my free time i get high.

I do silent revolutions. I think globally and i act very, very locally...... (my leaving room)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: endorfin on December 30, 2011, 03:50 pm
Come on folks, this is essentially a public forum for anyone who downloads the Tor browser and has the forum link. Grow up and learn to fly under the radar if you want to keep SR from experiencing a focused effort to somehow ruin it for us all. Anything can be can be hacked as we've seen recently at major corporations. They all think they are safe until it happens.

Don't intentionally put the spotlight on SR!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: johnnydepp2012 on December 31, 2011, 02:02 am
Personally, I think we should start moving away from SR. Something this good will NOT last forever, and when it collapses, I think its going to be disastrous.

What I'm going to start doing myself is just dealing via email and pgp.

Also, why are people against limited registration on SR? We have a very good community here, I think we should keep it that way. Maybe set up a system where the more reviews/higher rep you get, you get more invites to send out to people you know that want to join. So basically the more trustworthy you are, the more people you can bring to SR because if we can trust you on SR, I think that makes it more likely that you have trustworthy friends that want to join.

Something like the system would be easy to set up, and it would still allow SR to grow, but we would be able to have much more confidence about the new users joining.

Any thoughts?
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Holy Fyre on December 31, 2011, 02:38 am
who cares bbc is lame no1 cares about it except the people who work for bbc
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: thecloser29 on December 31, 2011, 10:56 am
Personally, I think we should start moving away from SR. Something this good will NOT last forever, and when it collapses, I think its going to be disastrous.

What I'm going to start doing myself is just dealing via email and pgp.

Also, why are people against limited registration on SR? We have a very good community here, I think we should keep it that way. Maybe set up a system where the more reviews/higher rep you get, you get more invites to send out to people you know that want to join. So basically the more trustworthy you are, the more people you can bring to SR because if we can trust you on SR, I think that makes it more likely that you have trustworthy friends that want to join.

Something like the system would be easy to set up, and it would still allow SR to grow, but we would be able to have much more confidence about the new users joining.

Any thoughts?
I agree 100%. Let SR be the "proving ground" for new buyers and sellers. Once they prove they're capable of maintaining the quality of service and most of all security we're used to, only then should they be invitied to be a part of the "VIP area"
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: johnnydepp2012 on December 31, 2011, 11:28 am
Personally, I think we should start moving away from SR. Something this good will NOT last forever, and when it collapses, I think its going to be disastrous.

What I'm going to start doing myself is just dealing via email and pgp.

Also, why are people against limited registration on SR? We have a very good community here, I think we should keep it that way. Maybe set up a system where the more reviews/higher rep you get, you get more invites to send out to people you know that want to join. So basically the more trustworthy you are, the more people you can bring to SR because if we can trust you on SR, I think that makes it more likely that you have trustworthy friends that want to join.

Something like the system would be easy to set up, and it would still allow SR to grow, but we would be able to have much more confidence about the new users joining.

Any thoughts?
I agree 100%. Let SR be the "proving ground" for new buyers and sellers. Once they prove they're capable of maintaining the quality of service and most of all security we're used to, only then should they be invitied to be a part of the "VIP area"

Exactly. I also agree with a lot of points oppyate made earlier.

SR can't continue forever the way it is. It just won't last as a centralized hub for drug buying. It should definitely be more P2P oriented. I suppose its because the guys who run SR want to make a profit too. But I mean, whats to stop me from making my own site - where its invite only, invites are based on rep, the site would be more of a forum for reviewing vendors and their wares, not actually facilitating any transactions. No escrow, but hey, that's what rep is for, and I think taking a chance not using escrow with someone who is well known and respected is much less risky than most drug deals that go down in person.

Really though, why don't some of the more well known-vendors and long-time, respectable buyers start venturing out on our own? Maybe just start with a mailing list (email), pgp only of course. That's a good starting point for continuing to do what we do outside of SR IMHO. For example, people know I sell tar, so they can just pgp email me their order information. Why not?

Any thoughts?

JD2012
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: thecloser29 on December 31, 2011, 12:47 pm
The best way I see of doing it is for SR to charge a 1 time members fee for the private area. Then it's win win`
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: johnnydepp2012 on December 31, 2011, 03:12 pm
Only if I get to charge the fee ;)
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Christy Nugs on January 01, 2012, 02:21 am
rofl
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: SammyJankis on January 01, 2012, 06:23 am
This is why drug addicts can't have nice things.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on January 02, 2012, 07:06 am
The best way I see of doing it is for SR to charge a 1 time members fee for the private area. Then it's win win`

- i disagree because being able to PAY to subscribe  or join doesn't mean anything at all, in case you haven't noticed the specialist "departments" out there will always
  have $150 to sign up as a seller & $40 or whatever is costs to become a buyer, unless i misread your post or your post doesn't describe what you were thinking at
  the time...

 >:(
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: yakyak on January 07, 2012, 03:13 am
  I'm all for a private area as long as I get an invite. I'm finally finding vendors for everything I like.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Lizard on February 13, 2012, 09:12 pm
I made the recent programme about Silk Road. A colleague in BBC World is also keen to people on this site. Here's a message from him below.
Thanks for all your help with the last programme. I didn't want to make it without having input from people who use Silk Road.
Kirsteen.

Hello: I'm a colleague of Kirsteen Knight's at the BBC in London - and I'm making a radio documentary about internet governance and security - the series will air globally on BBC World Service.   I'm keen to talk to anyone who uses or has used sites like Silk Road - just to get a snip of personal testimony about how easy it is to use the 'dark web', and what can be bought, how effective it is etc.  It's radio only - no pix - and of course we can guarantee anonymity. Kirsteen has kindly agreed to help me by posting this request - please can you contact me via her if you might be willing to help? Alternatively, I'm at michael.gallagher@bbc.co.uk   Thanks for considering this - MG.

Michael Gallagher

Producer: BBC World Service

Bush House

London WC2B 4PH   

tel +44 (0)1763 246034

mob +44 (0)7968 304588
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: LankWithDank on February 13, 2012, 10:56 pm
I made the recent programme about Silk Road. A colleague in BBC World is also keen to people on this site. Here's a message from him below.
Thanks for all your help with the last programme. I didn't want to make it without having input from people who use Silk Road.
Kirsteen.

Hello: I'm a colleague of Kirsteen Knight's at the BBC in London - and I'm making a radio documentary about internet governance and security - the series will air globally on BBC World Service.   I'm keen to talk to anyone who uses or has used sites like Silk Road - just to get a snip of personal testimony about how easy it is to use the 'dark web', and what can be bought, how effective it is etc.  It's radio only - no pix - and of course we can guarantee anonymity. Kirsteen has kindly agreed to help me by posting this request - please can you contact me via her if you might be willing to help? Alternatively, I'm at michael.gallagher@bbc.co.uk   Thanks for considering this - MG.

Michael Gallagher

Producer: BBC World Service

Bush House

London WC2B 4PH   

tel +44 (0)1763 246034

mob +44 (0)7968 304588
This is weird
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: keldog09 on February 20, 2012, 04:57 pm
Quote
Hello: I'm a colleague of Kirsteen Knight's at the BBC in London - and I'm making a radio documentary about internet governance and security - the series will air globally on BBC World Service.   I'm keen to talk to anyone who uses or has used sites like Silk Road - just to get a snip of personal testimony about how easy it is to use the 'dark web', and what can be bought, how effective it is etc.  It's radio only - no pix - and of course we can guarantee anonymity. Kirsteen has kindly agreed to help me by posting this request - please can you contact me via her if you might be willing to help? Alternatively, I'm at michael.gallagher@bbc.co.uk   Thanks for considering this - MG.

What's in it for us? This seems extremely fishy to me.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Holly on February 20, 2012, 05:00 pm
Quote
Hello: I'm a colleague of Kirsteen Knight's at the BBC in London - and I'm making a radio documentary about internet governance and security - the series will air globally on BBC World Service.   I'm keen to talk to anyone who uses or has used sites like Silk Road - just to get a snip of personal testimony about how easy it is to use the 'dark web', and what can be bought, how effective it is etc.  It's radio only - no pix - and of course we can guarantee anonymity. Kirsteen has kindly agreed to help me by posting this request - please can you contact me via her if you might be willing to help? Alternatively, I'm at michael.gallagher@bbc.co.uk   Thanks for considering this - MG.

What's in it for us? This seems extremely fishy to me.

There's nothing in it for us.  Keep your mouth shut!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on February 20, 2012, 05:50 pm
I made the recent programme about Silk Road. A colleague in BBC World is also keen to people on this site. Here's a message from him below.
Thanks for all your help with the last programme. I didn't want to make it without having input from people who use Silk Road.
Kirsteen.

- oh, how did it go, what more do you require that has not been already covered?!

I made the recent programme about Silk Road. A colleague in BBC World is also keen to people on this site
- 5live.....then bbc world service....kisteen knight....then michael gallagher....
- WHO ARE YA ?!

I made the recent programme about Silk Road. A colleague in BBC World is also keen to people on this site. Here's a message from him below.
Thanks for all your help with the last programme. I didn't want to make it without having input from people who use Silk Road.
Kirsteen.

..sites like Silk Road - just to get a snip of personal testimony about how easy it is to use the 'dark web', and what can be bought, how effective it is etc..
.... please can you contact me via her if you might be willing to help?

- WHY WOULD WE BE WILLING TO HELP, WE DONT NEED HELP THANKS FOR THE OFFER?
- what more do you expect to learn over and above what you've already reported?

 >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: PlutoPete on February 20, 2012, 06:13 pm
I don't see why everyone is getting their knickers in a twist over this, at least they are attempting to get our views.
Most reporters will just take a few screenshots and write whatever they like, flavouring it to whatever bias they have.
The BBC are not the gutter press, though they are constrained in what they can broadcast it's usually politics that gets censored (for example they refused to broadcast a humanitarian appeal during the Gaza attacks because they said it was political)
At the end of the day, if we don't talk to the media they'll make it up and print it anyway.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: TravellingWithoutMoving on February 20, 2012, 06:23 pm
I don't see why everyone is getting their knickers in a twist over this, at least they are attempting to get our views.
Most reporters will just take a few screenshots and write whatever they like, flavouring it to whatever bias they have.
The BBC are not the gutter press, though they are constrained in what they can broadcast it's usually politics that gets censored (for example they refused to broadcast a humanitarian appeal during the Gaza attacks because they said it was political)
At the end of the day, if we don't talk to the media they'll make it up and print it anyway.

Michael Gallagher

Producer: BBC World Service

Bush House

London WC2B 4PH   

tel +44 (0)1763 246034

mob +44 (0)7968 304588
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Variety Jones on February 20, 2012, 06:34 pm
Why don't you report how all the 'gun sales' reported by Gawker in their last article never happened; how Chens buddy set up a fake account to list guns; how Chen then took screenshots of those listings to write his hysterical article; and how Gawker in general pulled muey unethical shit to get page views--shit they could only get away with because Silk Road can't respond with a suit.

Now, that'd be real reporting.

EDIT: It also wouldn't hurt to mention that on The Silk Road you can buy 200+ varieties of cannabis seeds in original breeders packs, shipped anywhere in the world, guaranteed. Yeah, I'm sure folks would want to know that! Just sayin...
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: dr gonzo on February 20, 2012, 09:14 pm
The woods ;D
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Ungoliant on February 21, 2012, 01:29 am
One of these days we're going to see a Nat Geo Drugs Inc. episode about SR. I can feel it in my bones. Except they'd have nowhere to report from 'on site' except a computer monitor.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: grecko on February 21, 2012, 01:33 am
For those who haven't heard the broadcast, here it is:

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/5live/5linvestigates/5linvestigates_20120205-2330b.mp3

Now if this is the same broadcast that "Lizard" was part of I'm not exactly sure but it sure seems like it.

Also, how many of you knew of this site which is also related to this BBC "investigation?"

http://www.gwern.net/Silk%20Road#appendix-bbc-questions

I don't feel like stepping into the entire debate here right now, but I'll just say I highly doubt this has caused or will cause any dangerous splash. And in all honesty, it's a fairly interesting broadcast!

~Grecko
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Td1j83TftR on February 21, 2012, 03:53 am
Fuck this shit I would never give any info to a reporter. They are just looking for a story to twist into whatever they want their viewers to think. Why even take a chance with something like this. SK has changed a lot in the world and we're all grateful for it and for the most part happy with how it is now so why even take the risk of telling a "reporter" of all people what goes on in SK maybe im wrong but Im super fucking paranoid about every single thing I do on here even with all the security so to go and tell a reporter??? It just seems logical to me but many people have been on here way longer than me so maybe I am wrong.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: SRTRAVLER on February 21, 2012, 08:36 am
i want lsd!
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Shinto on February 21, 2012, 09:31 am
OK OK OK OK!

Let's drop some acid (or whatever you're into), go to the woods and dance our asses off. We'll come back, tell 'em what fun we had and say that it was only possible with the help of good ol' Silk Road.

If you're going to tell them anything, tell them how great it is and why you think so.
Choose your words carefully. If you can't do that, don't speak at all!

Governments already know about Silk Road... Why hide it's word any longer?
We need publicity, good publicity. Start a movement. Put the creation of this magical place to use.
We will stand, not to fight, to love. If they push us down with hate and oppression, we will stand, to fight.

Let's join together and make this a better place!  ;D
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: arutha on February 22, 2012, 10:54 am
For those who haven't heard the broadcast, here it is:

http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/5live/5linvestigates/5linvestigates_20120205-2330b.mp3

Now if this is the same broadcast that "Lizard" was part of I'm not exactly sure but it sure seems like it.

Also, how many of you knew of this site which is also related to this BBC "investigation?"

http://www.gwern.net/Silk%20Road#appendix-bbc-questions

I don't feel like stepping into the entire debate here right now, but I'll just say I highly doubt this has caused or will cause any dangerous splash. And in all honesty, it's a fairly interesting broadcast!

~Grecko


Haha
(from the broadcast) "Why don't police just shut down the tor site?"
Well, probably because it was actually developed by the US government.
Title: Re: I was just PM'd by a BBC journalist | To be aired on 5Live
Post by: Sc0t1and_Y4rdi3 on March 04, 2012, 04:34 am
so I ordered a little gift for our friend mr gallagher. order has been marked as shipped. hopefully he'll let us know when he's received the goods so I can release the funds to the vendor concerned!!