Ahead of the second edition of the Football Innovation Forum (FIF), World Football Summit has announced that Pixstory will be the event’s official social media platform. This article features as part of the latest edition of WFS Digest, our new insider’s guide to the latest and most relevant thoughts and practises from within the football industry. You can subscribe to WFS Digest HERE.
Pixstory, the new social media platform “committed to transparency, integrity, and decency in which users are held accountable to the truth”, was announced this week as the official social network of FIF22, World Football Summit’s Football Innovation Forum that takes place in Seville on 18 May. Pixstory was launched in 2021 with the mission of “addressing a critical gap in existing social media spaces by creating a platform that is reliable, safe, and evidence based.” As with other social media apps, Pixstory users can post photos and stories and engage with the content posted by other users.
Founded by a global team of former journalists and academics, Pixstory presents a unique feature: a sophisticated three-stage Truth Filter process to identify and root out hate and disinformation from the platform. Each Pixstory user is assigned an Integrity Score that increases based on their transparency, evidence-based contributions, and interactions on the app.
Pixstory allows users to create personal, evidence-based stories with up to 12 photos and 360 words per post, or a one-minute audio: an innovative multi-dimensional template for displaying posts that allows users to challenge inaccuracies or abuse and support quality content. Pixstory’s format limits singular interpretations of complex issues and fosters structured, meaningful debate.
Contributors can “support” and “challenge” stories to earn a higher Integrity Score with fact-based posts and they are then rewarded with badges based on their Integrity Score and proficiency in a particular subject area. Designations include Star Users, Topic Experts and Public Figures. All posts are subject to checks for abuse or pornography by sophisticated algorithms, while challenges to a story are reviewed by moderators, with help from experts. If a challenge is upheld, that post is replaced and the integrity score of its creator will decline. Pixstory’s algorithms give more visibility to posts by users with higher integrity scores.
Users can chat with other members through the in-app chat feature. They can also connect with other users based on their interests or geographical proximity, and showcase their work using special pages that can be used to create a network of like minded users.
Does it require a subscription?
Pixstory is a free, ad-supported platform for now. Pixstory will later provide a paid subscription version with an ad-free experience that includes access to premium content. Users who earn topic badges can opt to put some of, or all, their content behind a paywall. Ads that promote hate, discrimination, or misinformation are not accepted.
The platform has been endorsed by former slam dunk champion and eight-time NBA all-star, Dwight Howard, its first Ambassador. Its board is composed by Peter Watson, Koji Tsuruoka, Aruna Sundararajan, Cody Keenan, Prof Amitabh Mattoo, Prof Dinesh Singh, Mike Rann and Appu Esthose Suresh.
Suresh is the Founder and CEO of Pixstory, as well as a Senior Fellow, International Inequalities Institute, at the London School of Economics. He was previously Editor (Special Assignments) at the Hindustan Times. He has done extensive work on the changing pattern of communal riots in India, as well as mapping economic inequality in the country.
This article features as part of the latest edition of WFS Digest, our new insider’s guide to the latest and most relevant thoughts and practises from within the football industry. You can subscribe to WFS Digest HERE.
