They are taking advantage of YOU, and you're ignoring it. You're turning a blind eye. You've chosen money over people by doing so. I'm ashamed you are on this platform now.
The content rising to the top is the BLACK TAR SHIT of this site, and it's getting up there because of "services" like what you offer. You are telling people "I accept bribes for votes", and in doing so you are tainting the original meaning of this place. Even in the white paper it talks about how the setup SHOULD bring the best content to the top. But the moment people like you offer bribed votes, that all changed.
I have been screaming from the mountaintops for someone to give me delegation so I can do my part in correcting some of this, to bring the ACTUALLY good content to the top and now I'll be going into level 10 efforts to get it.
Otherwise, quality of content means exactly nothing because of services like yours.
Vote buying was here before I got here, and would be here if I wasn't. Now it is far more public and transparent, but without bots there will be just as much vote buying it just would be more secretive and hush-hush.
The majority of trending posts are the result of paid votes regardless if actual bots are used.
Every platform has advertising, and that's what buying votes are. Google Search, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, you name it, it has advertising to push shit to the top as you would say.
I would rather have someone like me trying to make a difference for the good than leaving it to those who don't or the backroom deals the control trending.
I just saw this reply, and I had one for you in the steemit.chat room as well, which I'll go ahead and post here too. No reason not to:
Alright, look, I'll put a cap on it. I don't have to agree with what is done, but I have nothing personally against you. We just seem to have a disagreement on what is considered ethical. I've been putting more thought into all of this, and I'll make it my mission with any delegation I get to be use it for voting, not flagging. In fact I'm going to update my post to reflect this in just a minute (which I've since done). I honestly don't expect to get nearly the amount I've aimed for. I purposely aimed high because I figured it would give me a shot at getting at least a decent enough amount to do what I plan to do with it, which is simply to highlight what I consider - in my professional opinion - to be higher-shelf photography that seems to be getting lost in the shuffle. Yes, it's subjective. I get that. I never disagreed with that. I just don't find anything useful in philosophical discussions about subjectivity. I've already solidified my own personal stance on what is and isn't art (or good art) many years ago, as well as the realization that changing one's mind about any given subject in a debate is extremely unlikely. So I'd just rather not. We can shake hands and have an understanding about each other's position. We don't, of course, have to make enemies out of each other, either. I don't plan to anyway. The ultimate fact of the matter is that no suggestion for what direction any community should go will ever be accepted by 100% of the people in it. Yay, politics.
It's good to read this. It was what I thought: that Trending Posts are often in some way paid. And I don't like it. This place is all about money. Boring. They tell us about proof of brain, when the only proof of brain seems to be about making money the fastest way. But being able to make lots of money often isn't about brain in this world, but about having no scruples