Factually! with Adam Conover The Ensh*ttification of Everything with Cory Doctorow
12 snips
Oct 8, 2025 
Cory Doctorow, a renowned author and digital rights activist, dives deep into the concept he coined, 'enshittification.' He explains how tech giants systematically degrade our digital experiences for profit. From the stages of platform decay to the impact on real-world services like grocery pricing, Cory highlights the alarming trends of competition collapse and AI narratives that threaten jobs. He proposes radical solutions like legalizing jailbreaking and emphasizes the importance of user empowerment and grassroots organizing. It's a call to action against the status quo!
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Origin Of The Term 'Enshittification'
- Cory coined “enshittification” after a frustrated tweet about TripAdvisor during bad internet.
- The rude, catchy term helped package a complex critique and made it stick in public conversation.
Three-Stage Platform Degradation
- Platforms lock users then worsen user experience to extract revenue from business customers.
- Firms reach a steady state where minimal user value keeps both sides locked and investors harvest the surplus.
Policy Environment Enables Enshittification
- Reduced competition and lax antitrust enforcement enabled platforms to collude on policy and capture regulators.
- Big firms use acquisition and lobbying power to freeze market choices and buy regulatory outcomes.
