Summary

Medium writers and publications are facing a trend where their original content is being repurposed by other writers, particularly from top-tier Medium publications and editors, without proper attribution or fair use practices, leading to potential loss of income and readership.

Abstract

The article discusses a concerning trend on Medium where original stories from hardworking writers and publications are being summarized and republished by senior editors and high-profile publications without proper credit or compensation. This practice, termed "Bully Publishing," involves taking a curated story, rewriting it as a new piece, and redistributing it for additional income. The issue was highlighted by an incident where a story published in "Our Human Family" was later summarized and published in "Momentum" by Kelli Maria Korducki, a senior editor at Medium, without linking back to the original source. Despite the original story being recognized as impactful during Black History Month, the Momentum version appeared on their homepage shortly after, raising ethical concerns. The article emphasizes that this is not fair use and constitutes a form of bullying that deprives original creators of their rightful earnings and readership. The article also notes that, following the controversy, Medium removed the offending version of the story, but there has been no public apology or change in policy to prevent future occurrences.

Opinions

The practice of summarizing and republishing content without proper attribution is seen as unethical and a form of bullying.
This trend is particularly disturbing when perpetrated by top-tier Medium publications and editors who should be upholding ethical writing standards.
The lack of in-text links to the original writer and publication in the republished content is viewed as a deliberate attempt to keep the original creators unaware of the content reuse.
The incident reflects poorly on the professional conduct of the offending writers and editors, such as Kelli Maria Korducki and Adrienne Samuels Gibbs, who have bylines in reputable publications and should know better.
There is a call for Medium to address this issue publicly and implement policies to protect the rights and earnings of original content creators on the platform.

Bully Publishing: The New Medium Trend

Subverting readers and potential earnings away from Medium writers and pubs

I’m seeing a disturbing trend on Medium. Hardworking Medium writers and pubs are basically having their stories hijacked by other writers. What’s most disturbing is that top tier Medium publications and editors are the offenders.

Take for instance this February 7 story in my publication, Our Human Family.

The Little-Known History of the Underground Railroad to Mexico

And the Afro-Mestizo emancipator who opened the door to Mexico for enslaved people

medium.com

And now a Cliff’s Notes version of the same story now appears in Momentum by Kelli Maria Korducki, a senior editor at Medium. What Korducki has done is essentially summarized a curated (distributed) story and then disguised it as a new piece that is then redistributed and earns her income.

Rediscovering the Underground Railroad’s Other Route: to Mexico

There’s more to this history

momentum.medium.com

This is not Fair Use. But it is straight-up bullying, unprofessional, and essentially taking money away from hardworking writers.

What’s more is that neither the writer nor the publication are linked in text of the article as a common courtesy, not that this would make the theft anymore acceptable. It’s almost as if the the culprits don’t want the writers to know what’s going on.

Adding insult to injury, is that Adrienne Samuels Gibbs (Managing Editor at Momentum) specifically solicited a group of writers as to which story was most impactful thus far in Black History Month, the Our Human Family story was mentioned; and not even three days later this same story shows up on Momentum’s homepage.

This is not cool. And sends a horrifying message to writers and open publications on Medium.

With bylines at Ebony, Chicago Sun-Times, Boston Globe, Miami Herald, St Pete Times as her bio states Adrienne Gibbs should know better and practice ethical standards in writing.

I see this happening with other stories as well with other stories in Momentum and ZORA. This does not look like Fair Use. Is this something all hardworking writers, editors, and publications can look forward to happening with their stories on Medium? Asking for a friend.

MORE Thoughts on Bully Publishing: the New Medium Trend

Subverting readers and potential earnings away from Medium writers and pubs

medium.com

Postscript: Links were added to the Momentum bully-published story, but that does not diminish the fact that the truncated version still exists, still compensates a senior Medium writer for readership (on top of whatever she’s pulling in), and still subverts readers and earnings from the original writer, Cocoa Griot. As of this writing on February 19, 2021, at 12:46 a.m. no apology to or change in Medium policy has been made. —CR

Postscript: At our request, Medium has removed their bully-published version of Cocoa Griot’s story. Hopefully, they will make known their plans for remedying this situation so that the same thing doesn’t happen to other Medium writers in the future. —CR, February 20, 2021