Riot calls NYT article on bitcoin mining politically motivated

Riot Platforms described The New York Times’ article on bitcoin mining as a politically motivated attack on the industry, ‘full of distortions and outright falsehoods’.

Riot Platforms, Inc. Statement: The New York Times’ Politically Driven Attack On Bitcoin Mining Is Full of Distortions & Outright Falsehoods.

Read more in today’s press release: https://t.co/NBRv0f1Zd5

— Riot Platforms, Inc. (@RiotPlatforms) April 10, 2023

The community faced criticism of the NYT publication titled Real Costs of the Digital Bitcoin Race. The authors accused mining of an ‘insatiable appetite’ for electricity consumption, the impact on tariffs, unwarranted payments for outages, and the use of energy sources with a carbon footprint.

The activity of Riot, the largest publicly traded bitcoin miner in North America, was cited in the article as one of the bases for the authors’ conclusions.

“We are particularly disappointed to read the false and distorted portrayal of our company and our industry in the NYT. Even worse, the publication decided to publish an article with information that, as the authors knew, was false and misleading. They ignored the factual data and information we had previously provided,” Riot said.

The company noted that contrary to the journalists’ claims, it creates jobs and helps develop local economies. Riot’s facility in Milam County, Texas, is the largest employer and taxpayer.

In demand-response programs for grid balancing, miners participate on a competitive basis, leveraging their advantage — the ability to pause equipment almost instantaneously and restart it just as quickly, Riot emphasised.

Cryptocurrency miners are no different from other electricity consumers. At the same time, industry participants largely aim to connect directly to non-carbon energy sources, the company noted.

In this context Riot published a satirical video. In the frame, the head of research Pierre Rochard demonstrates low CO₂ levels in the air near the company’s largest data centre in Rockdale, Texas. Then he enters the facility, where the figure is even lower.

Bitcoin mining has zero carbon emissions. pic.twitter.com/dOO4wZpSW6

— Riot Platforms, Inc. (@RiotPlatforms) April 10, 2023

“The science is compelling. The data show that Bitcoin mining does not emit CO₂,” Rochard concludes.

Not all users appreciated Riot’s joke.

“Someone, please explain to them where the carbon emissions come from,” wrote one commenter.

The company responded that the video was simply satire of the NYT’s ‘faulty and unscientific view’.

In March, Greenpeace introduced a new mascot, which embodies ‘dangerous levels of pollution’ caused by mining the leading cryptocurrency.

Later, the artist who created ‘Satoshi’s skull’ admitted his error regarding the Proof-of-Work algorithm.