316. Have you become a founding member of Medium?

A week or so ago I received an email. I’m sure many of you received the same email.

It was an invitation to become a founding member of Medium. My interest was piqued.

However after reading the details my interest soon waned.

I find it intriguing that Medium is trying to create an alternative status quo to the current media ecosystem, and I commend them for that.

It’s just that for me, Medium is about the community (something I have alluded to before and also something Ev Williams alluded to in the invitation email), and I feel that the membership element of Medium may detract from that.

I don’t come to Medium to read exclusive stories. I come to Medium to read stories from the otherwise unheard voices. The people like me who have something that they’d like to share.

Their writing styles may need some polishing, there may be grammar and spelling mistakes, but that’s ok. I’m interested in their story not their ability to pass a literature test.

And that’s one of the things I love about Medium. It gives people a voice, people who are normal, everyday people. Genuine people who write because they have something to share, not because they’re getting paid for it.

So for now I’ll stick to being a regular Medium user, not a founding Member.