Wait a minute. It ain't broke, don't fix it.
True, the Olympic Times is not much use as a factual source of events. But
it seems to me that it's a perfect simulation of the Associated Press during
medieval times. Where are the satellites that make instantaneous and
accurate communication possible? The news SHOULD BE garbled and unreliable.
Why doesn't a player take it upon himself to create an <<accurate>>
newsletter in which only articles which are signed are printed? The GM and
the game are not required to provide that service. I enjoy the utter chaos
that is associated with the Olympic Times. It should be regarded as only a
source of rumors - maybe you should post a disclaimer in the header with
every issue. But why change the ground rules?
Furthermore, there are a lot of turns where I have not had the time or
interest to submit articles or paragraphs - so I don't get 25 gold. Seems
fair to me.
Finally, paying the gold to the CLAIM funds is _far_ different than paying
the gold to individual players. I now regret spending my CLAIM funds so fast
since they're like a medieval checking account. I can't see any reason at
all to change that rule.