The Chaos Machine

Building on years of international reporting, Max Fisher tells the gripping story of how Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social networks preyed on psychological frailties to create algorithms that drive users to extreme opinions and actions.

The book explores how the companies' founding tenets and focus on maximizing engagement have led to a destabilized world, marked by increasing social and political polarization, misinformation, and violence.

Fisher also highlights the stories of heroic outsiders and Silicon Valley defectors who raised alarms about these issues.