
Reimagining the Internet
Reimagining the Internet is a production of the Initiative for Digital Public Infrastructure at UMass Amherst, asking scholars, activists, journalists, and artists what is broken on the internet and how to fix it.
Latest episodes

Jan 25, 2024 • 36min
Rewind: The Netherlands’ most important sociologist is building the other DPI: the Dutch Public Internet
Rerun of episode 69 from February 15th, 2023. José van Dijck is arguably the preeminent sociologist in the Netherlands, conducting research about how online platforms have crept into public life that has proved foundational to European regulation like the Digital Services Act. Today on Reimagining the Internet, José talks to us about PubHubs, an attempt to build […]

Jan 18, 2024 • 36min
Rewind: Third Wave Internet with Ben Tarnoff
Rerun of episode 81 from June 24th, 2023 We’re always told algorithms are going to change our world. And they do, but it always seems to be for the worse. Do we have any alternative to simply breaking the machines that have run afoul of our values and needs? We’re thrilled to welcome Ben Tarnoff […]

Jan 11, 2024 • 38min
Rewind: iDPI’s New Manifesto: The Three-Legged Stool
From April 5th, 2023: We talk a lot about reimagining the internet here at iDPI, and that’s because it’s something we spend most of our time at the lab doing. We’re thrilled to share our new, banner white paper with you, and we hope you’re excited by our call to widen your own imagination if […]

Dec 20, 2023 • 27min
96. Should All Old Passwords Be Forgot: The 2023 Holiday Special
It’s that wonderful time of year for one of our favorite lab activities here at iDPI: making the Reimagining the Internet holiday special. This year we decided to go for unmitigated optimism and making promises to ourselves we’ll definitely be keeping. That’s right, everyone here at iDPI made New Year’s resolutions for the Internet. Join us as […]

Dec 13, 2023 • 35min
95. What’s the answer when workplace surveillance creeps into the home? Ifeoma Ajunwa says civil rights and organized labor
Ifeoma Ajunwa wrote the definitive book about how data is used to surveil and attempt to automate away workers. This week on Reimagining, Dr. Ajunwa tells us how a history rooted in eugenics and Henry Ford sending private detectives to workers’ homes led us to this moment when software is used as a cover for discriminatory hiring […]

Nov 29, 2023 • 40min
94. How does Meduza’s Kevin Rothrock publish some of the best reporting about Russia? From far, far away.
Kevin Rothrock has been reporting on Russian culture and politics since the mid-aughts, and as the English-language editor of Meduza, he’s a crucial figure in helping the English-speaking West understand the day-to-day in Putin’s Russia during the war in Ukraine, and on the front lines too. This week on Reimagining, Kevin Rothrock tells us how […]

Nov 15, 2023 • 37min
93. Reddit is powered by community moderators. We asked former senior mod Kethryvis if that can last.
Former senior mod at Reddit, Christine Moelleberndt, discusses her experiences in community management and the evolving role of moderators. She explores the challenges of achieving 'perfect governance' in subreddits and the motivations behind why people become moderators. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of trust, safety, and community involvement in online communities.

Oct 25, 2023 • 47min
92. Where’d all the music blogs go? with Emilie Friedlander
Emilie Friedlander got her start covering Western Mass music while living in France, and made a career as a music editor at the biggest online magazines like Pitchfork and VICE. This week on Reimagining, Mike asks her: where did all the music writing go? Emilie Frielander is cohost of The Culture Journalist with Andrea Domanick. […]

Oct 18, 2023 • 44min
91. Global Voices has spent 19 years platforming bloggers in 52 languages. Georgia Popplewell, where does it go from here?
Georgia Popplewell has dedicated two decades to publishing local bloggers writing in 52 languages. What’s Global Voices fate in this strange era of the Internet? The long-time managing director of Global Voices joins the show to talk to her co-founder Ethan about the blogosphere of yore and why we’ll never stop needing global, local perspectives. […]

Oct 4, 2023 • 30min
90. Are American politics more polarized than ever? Brendan Nyhan thinks social media just helps us see it more.
Brendan Nyhan spends a lot of time researching America’s political polarization and the strength of its democracy with the organization he founded, Bright Line Watch. In part 2 of our interview with him, he tells us how questions about the state of America’s democracy really need to be put in the context that we didn’t […]