Base Creator Apologizes for Controversial GIF, Community Divided

Jesse Pollak, the creator of Base, an Ethereum layer 2 network backed by Coinbase, has issued an apology for sharing a controversial GIF on X. The GIF, which played on Base's tagline "Base is for everyone," featured a rotating sequence of terms, some of which were neutral, such as "art," "minting," and "great ideas." However, the sequence also included controversial terms like "pimping" and "squirting."

Pollak clarified that neither he nor the Base marketing team was involved in creating the GIF, stating that it was developed by a creator he wanted to support. Despite this, he acknowledged that sharing the GIF was a mistake, particularly highlighting the phrase "Base is for pimping." He expressed regret, stating, "I’ll own this was a mistake and apologize. I’m sorry… the messages I share matter, especially when they look and feel like a direct message from me."

Pollak continued to promote the GIF creator, known as Wizard_Kin on X, even after the initial backlash. In various posts, he encouraged users to support the artist, stating that "art is provocative" and endorsing Wizard_Kin. However, the community's response was swift and critical. Many users found the GIF vulgar, offensive, and inappropriate. Crypto commentator David Z. Morris highlighted the negative impact of the GIF, stating that the allusion to sex trafficking "doesn’t just hurt Base, it hurts crypto." The pseudonymous founder of Kanto Labs, AshRobin, described the incident as "an absolute PR nightmare," while crypto commentator Kristel labeled the GIF as "stupid" rather than "provocative and ‘edgy’."

Pollak's apology received a mixed response from the community. Some praised his honesty and transparency, with crypto commentator Zuri stating, "Love the honesty. We all make mistakes, but it’s about how we grow from them." Bankless co-founder David Hoffman also expressed respect for Pollak's leadership. However, others, like Milk Road co-founder Kyle Reidhead, suggested that there was no need for Pollak to apologize, advocating for freedom of expression without apology.

This controversy marks the second incident involving Base and Pollak within a week. The previous controversy involved Base sharing a tokenized version of its "Base is for Everyone" post on Zora, a decentralized content-sharing platform. Despite Zora's disclaimer that the token was not associated with Base or Coinbase and warnings against expecting returns, investors began trading the token, leading to a significant market cap fluctuation. Multiple analysts and users accused Base of market manipulation and a rug pull, although Base claimed that the token was a 'Content Coin' rather than a memecoin.

In his latest apology post, Pollak defended the concept of content coins, explaining that Base has started coining its content on Zora to expand the use-cases of tokens. He described coining content as a "powerful tool" for creators to earn from their creativity. Pollak acknowledged the pushback from the community, stating that Base is trying to challenge the status quo. He expressed hope that the community would continue to explore the technology's potential to bring more people onchain, adding, "I can’t predict the future, but I hope that we’ll continue to see folks look at the technology with clear eyes and see how we can use it to bring more people onchain."