Virtual Public Square

Virtual Public Squares are digital spaces for open communication. Publishers establish identities, preferably on their own websites, and use those identities to attach verifiable provenance to content with cryptographic signatures. The signed content is broadcast into one or more Virtual Public Squares. Once signed and broadcast, the content becomes public and portable.

The content, with provenance, may move from one Virtual Public Square to another, may be indexed and made searchable, and may be displayed to readers in feeds, curated lists, or search results. Every time a Virtual Public Square displays content, the publisher’s cryptographic signature is attached to that content and can be verified.

In the event that any Virtual Public Square blocks content from a publisher, that p…