There’s a new currency in town (and no, we’re not talking about Bitcoin). We’re talking about attention. In this episode of IRL, Veronica Belmont and special guest Jane Lytvynenko explore all the ways your attention has become worth money on social media. Meet Hamlet the Piggy, an Instagram star who is helping her owner cope with epilepsy and also build a business; Lisette Calveiro, whose quest for fame online left her spending beyond her means; and media theorist Douglas Rushkoff, who discusses what’s behind the emerging attention economy.

IRL is an original podcast from Mozilla. For more on the series go to irlpodcast.org.

When does attention online turn into addiction online? Here’s a perspective from Mozilla’s Heather West.

Imagine a world where social networks weren’t necessarily designed to capture your attention, but instead were built to benefit you and your community. Here are some thoughts by Katharina Nocun on what this would look like.

And, here’s a piece by Nick Briz about how attention merchants online use your digital fingerprints to target you with content.

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