In cyberson, we see this tension between wanting to prioritize an end goal, versus wanting to prioritize the process. Is it enough to win the battle of production? What if it means having engineers go into factories and treat workers with disdain? But what if you prioritize the process and commit to work or participation knowing that it will make the end goal more difficult and possibly elusive? And so i think this history really helps bring these complexities to light and invite further discussion.
Paris Marx is joined by Eden Medina to discuss Project Cybersyn, a technological system created by Chile’s socialist government in the 1970s to manage production, and what it can teach us about political technology and innovation outside the Global North.
Eden Medina is the author of “Cybernetic Revolutionaries: Technology and Politics in Allende's Chile.” She’s also an associate professor at MIT and the Rita E. Hauser Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. Follow Eden on Twitter as @edenmedina.
Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.
Find out more about Harbinger Media Network at harbingermedianetwork.com.
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