How Strategic PR Transformed Blockchain’s Public Image in Mainstream Media

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For a long time, the public viewed the entire blockchain space as just “that Bitcoin thing”. If you worked in the tech scene around 2016, you probably would have been watching on with a mixture of fascination and frustration. The mainstream media covered blockchain in the news as a combination of hype, scams, speculation, and never-ending talk of it being a bubble. Or even worse, a Ponzi scheme. 

Today, there is still a fair amount of skepticism and vocal doubters out there. However, the narrative has certainly shifted. Crypto exchanges now sponsor major sports arenas. A-list celebrities, from Matt Damon to Tom Brady, have endorsed crypto brands. Major financial institutions like PayPal, Visa, and Mastercard integrate cryptocurrency payments. Even fashion brands like Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana have embraced NFTs.

So what happened? Strategic public relations happened—and it offers fascinating lessons for anyone interested in how technical innovations eventually gain public acceptance.

From Crypto-Anarchists to Corporate Boardrooms

Look up the term ‘blockchain’ or ‘crypto’ from any of the archives of major mainstream news publications. You will likely find a ton of articles slating the industry. For example, just look at this article from The Guardian titled “Bitcoin is a fraud that will blow up.

The subheading for this post is “Jamie Dimon claims cryptocurrency is only fit for use by drug dealers, murderers, and people living in North Korea”. It’s not exactly the most positive coverage in the world. 

In reality, headlines screamed about Bitcoin bubbles and criminal activities, while the underlying technology received little thoughtful analysis.

Then something changed.

The blockchain narrative in mainstream media transformed from “mysterious internet money” to “revolutionary technology with applications across industries.” This shift didn’t happen by accident. It was the result of deliberate PR strategies executed by companies, foundations, and advocates who understood what was at stake.

The PR Playbook That Changed the Game

What exactly did effective blockchain PR teams do to change public perception? They employed several key strategies that you can adapt for your own tech or complex product:

They Simplified Without Dumbing Down

Early blockchain explanations in the media often led to people getting lost in the technical details. This is a common problem amongst almost any new tech solution. Just look up early YouTube videos of experts explaining how the internet works. 

Mainstream users will adopt and use a technology if it is simple to understand. That’s why blockchain PR teams learned to use metaphors and real-world comparisons that made sense to non-technical audiences.

“Think of blockchain as a digital ledger that everyone can see, but nobody can alter unnoticed” became much more effective than lengthy explanations about cryptographic hashing and consensus mechanisms.

A skilled blockchain PR agency recognizes that if it is to deliver value to its clients, it needs to be able to create explanations for the project’s value that respect the audience’s intelligence. This could be done by making abstract concepts more accessible through familiar analogies and real-world applications.

They Put Faces to the Technology

Following on from the last point, abstract technology is hard to relate to—even for those who consider themselves savvy. That’s why crypto public relations efforts often center around “humanizing” brands and projects. 

Consider how Vitalik Buterin became the approachable face of Ethereum—a young, brilliant developer whose story of creating the platform at just 19 made for compelling media narratives far more relatable than technical whitepapers.

Or, on the other side of the coin, much of blockchain PR became about showcasing regular people using and benefiting from blockchain applications. That meant people could relate to these innovative tools and services much more easily. 

They Shifted Focus to Problems Solved

The most successful blockchain PR pivoted from talking about the technology itself to discussing the real-world problems it solved. Supply chain transparency, financial inclusion, and data security became the headlines instead of block sizes and mining algorithms.

Most people aren’t necessarily concerned with HOW problems are solved (in a technical sense). They just want them solved and their lives and jobs made easier. 

Even still, many blockchain projects still make the mistake of focusing on the technical aspects rather than discussing the real-world issues and pain points they solve. People want utility, use cases, and a demonstration of it happening. 

The Trust Paradox: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

Before we wrap things up, let’s quickly acknowledge that things aren’t exactly all sunshine and roses. The blockchain industry’s PR journey has been far from a straight line upwards, and there continue to be issues that damage the space’s credibility. Just as trust begins to build, scandals like the FTX collapse or a massive crypto heist send the industry reeling backward. 

These setbacks present a critical PR challenge: how do you separate legitimate blockchain applications from the speculative excesses and outright fraud that make headlines?

What made the FTX scandal particularly damaging was Bankman-Fried’s carefully cultivated image as the “responsible face” of crypto. He testified before Congress, appeared on magazine covers, and pledged billions to effective altruism causes. When this trusted figure fell, it didn’t just damage one company—it cast doubt on the entire industry’s credibility.

Of course, one bad apple should not spoil the barrel. For every one of these schemes, there are many more legitimate, innovative, and exciting new projects that truly bring a lot of value to the table. But this is where blockchain PR teams earn their worth by finding ways to demonstrate the legitimacy of both individual projects and the industry as a whole. 

Final Word

The blockchain PR story teaches us an important lesson about technological adoption: public perception matters as much, if not more, than the technology itself. No matter how revolutionary your innovation, adoption will stall if people don’t trust it or understand its value.

For blockchain, strategic PR has been the bridge between technical potential and public acceptance. The industry has slowly but surely transformed its image by simplifying complex concepts, humanizing the technology, focusing on problems solved, and weathering inevitable setbacks with transparency.

That’s why today’s most successful blockchain projects don’t lead with technical jargon or revolutionary rhetoric. Technological revolutions aren’t just built-in labs and codebases. Stories, explanations, and carefully rebuilt trust also play a crucial role in their creation.



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