It's worth you knowing

​​Hi Folks,

I wanted to send out a personal note in case you were unlucky enough to encounter the mass trolling that started last week related to me and our work on The Outlaw Ocean Music Project. I am sorry to have been slow to reply but I had my hands full doing some more reporting on our recent Libya investigation. 

In any case, the video that initiated the trolling campaign is entirely inaccurate. For legal reasons, I’m limited in what I can say on this topic due to a contract dispute. But I’d strongly encourage people to look closely at the facts. I’d also note that neither I nor anyone on my staff have ever made a cent from the music project nor was or is that the intent. It’s a project about which we are extremely proud. Far from being a scam, it is something of real beauty and innovation, albeit costly for us to run. The core goal has been to use the music to disseminate to a younger and more diverse global audience what we think is worthy journalism. The project, which has been widely and well covered, has been a resounding success. 

Thanks to everyone, including many artists, who wrote to me to say how supportive they are of the music project. Despite having put a lot of investment into releasing the albums, Synesthesia, the label I created to run the project, alerted all participating musicians yesterday that they are welcome to keep their streaming revenue if they prefer not to help grow the effort and spread the reporting with a portion of that revenue. Any artist who wants to have their music removed from the project has also been given the option to do so. The point is, and has always been, that only artists who believe in the mission and the journalism should stay involved. 

In any case, here is a link that you can consult for accurate information about the effort. And please, enjoy the music while you explore the reporting. 

Thanks,

Ian