Are you using information—or is information using you?

Online platforms, advertisers and data systems earn money from people’s attention. This independent site is building a different bargain: if verified human participants knowingly create eligible advertising or sponsorship value, can a documented share return to them?

Minimum-data architecture

Sensitive payment identity stays with the provider built to protect it.

Supabase Auth manages sign-in. Stripe-hosted Checkout manages card and billing details. Stripe-hosted Connect onboarding manages bank, identity and tax information for adult recipients.

The Reporter keeps consent, campaign and accounting records plus opaque provider references. It does not collect or duplicate card numbers, bank accounts, birth dates, tax IDs, identity documents, PayPal emails or Cash App handles in its program database.

The idea in plain language

Attention has value. People deserve to see where that value goes.

The pilot now has a secured advertiser side, an adults-only participant side and a public ledger. Collected revenue follows an actual-costs-first waterfall before any remainder becomes a viewer pool.

It would not pay people merely to click, reward outrage, guarantee income or turn private reading histories into a product. The goal is a transparent, limited and community-reviewable alternative to hidden attention extraction.

Non-negotiable principles

Rules must come before enrollment.

Voluntary participation

Reading the public Reporter remains free and does not require an account. A future dividend program would be a separate, informed opt-in.

Privacy before profit

The model will not depend on selling a person’s private browsing history. Any measurement used must be limited, explained and open to public review.

Real people, fair rules

Participation must be limited to verified human beings, with safeguards against bots, duplicate accounts, manipulation and advertiser control.

Show the receipts

Eligible revenue, operating costs, reserves and the participant-share calculation must be documented. The formula must be published before enrollment opens.

Proposed accounting path

The math should be understandable.

This sequence is a design target, not a claim that distributable revenue currently exists.

1Eligible value entersQualifying revenue is identified.
2Actual costs are shownOperations, fees and reserves are documented.
3A net pool is calculatedThe published formula is applied.
4Verified shares are issuedOnly after compliance and fraud checks.

For sponsors

Prepare a campaign

Upload private creative, choose a section, set the budget and disclose the exact per-view reward.

Open advertiser desk

For adults 18+

Control your attention

Advertising remains off until you opt in. See the time and reward before choosing any sponsor message.

Open participant choices

For everyone

Follow the money

Read the sponsor rules, available placements and public allocation receipts without signing in.

See rules & receipts

Launch gates

The money stays locked until these are complete.

Enrollment and draft preparation do not authorize a live charge or payout. These gates are operational requirements.

Connect and verify Stripe-hosted Checkout and Connect recipient onboarding.
Complete sandbox payment, refund, webhook and failed-payout tests.
Record current maintenance, equipment, subscription and founder-labor obligations.
Publish the first funded campaign ledger before any compensated view begins.
Review tax reporting and unclaimed-property handling before the first live payout.

Build the rules in public

Challenge the idea before trusting it.

Point out risks, ask what is missing and help define what fair, private and transparent would have to mean in practice.

Join the public discussion