The Future of Social Media

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I think we're already seeing a sort of balkanization happening. There's this broad trend to centralize everything on the internet through massive networks like Twitter and Facebook that just turned everybody up together in one place. I do think there is a bit of a reckoning now where people realize that they're going to these platforms, but not necessarily for authentic interactions with people you might meet in the real world. And could artificial intelligence spell the end for the social media landscape as we know it?

Can we get rid of the bad bits of social media and keep the good? Is it possible to create a more positive social media experience than the one we get from the platforms that dominate the landscape today? In this episode, Elaine Moore asks what the social media platforms of the future should look like, and whether platforms designed for smaller groups of users with shared interests are the way forward.

We hear from writer and tech historian Benj Edwards about the BBS era of the early 1990s; University of Massachusetts professor Ethan Zuckerman; Sarah Gilbert, researcher at Cornell University and Reddit moderator; and Jonathan Abrams, partner at 8-Bit Capital and the creator of Friendster.

Presented by Elaine Moore. Produced by Edwin Lane and Josh Gabert-Doyon, Executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. Special thanks to Hannah Murphy.

Mentioned in this podcast:

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Reddit stands firm in clash with users as blackout on forums escalates

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