The SPLC Controversy and a Bigger Question: What Happens When Information Is Paid For?

By David Henson | Citizen Octopus A recent controversy involving the Southern Poverty Law Center has pulled a familiar but under examined practice into the spotlight: paying people for information. And the implications of when information is bought: on accuracy, privacy, and the journalism. The legal questions in the SPLC case may center on issues like fraud or misrepresentation. But step back for a moment, and a deeper set of questions comes into focus; questions about accuracy, incentives, and privacy in modern information gathering. The Quiet Market for Information Most people associate paid informants with law enforcement. But the reality is broader. Across government, media, corporations, and nonprofits, there is a quiet and persistent marketplace: Information is not just collected. It is often incentivized. The market for information likely runs into the billions of dollars. Payment opens doors. It also changes behavior. Accuracy Under Incentives Once money enters the equation,…