Reimagining the Internet

Ben Tarnoff has a radical idea: unprivatize the Internet. The writer, Logic Magazine founder, and tech worker activist joins us to talk about his new book outlining what a truly public Internet would look like, from the fiber optic cables to the social media platforms platforms.

Google and Meta have been spending a small fortune to lay undersea cables bringing more broadband to Africa. Journalists Andrew Blum and Carey Baraka join us this week to talk about their years-in-the-making article for Rest of World asking if those companies will control what Africans can and can't access onli

Loads of stimulus, quick hits of dopamine, and no natural light: does this describe a casino or Facebook? The Danish philosopher Vincent F. Hendricks and digital media researcher Camilla Mehlsen join to walk us through their new book The Ministry of Truth, which explore how the attention economy incentivizes social media companies to make products […]

Brandy Zadrozny just made one of our favorite podcasts of the year, NBC's Tiffany Dover is Dead, so we needed to get her on the show to talk about the ins and outs of debunking conspiracy theories with gumshoe reporting.

Bruno Patino thinks the economics of the Internet are set up to give us the attention spans of goldfish. In this week's episode, Bruno tells us why France, a country such good public broadcast media, has so much trouble reigning in corporate social media.

With news that Elon Musk is purchasing Twitter, we recorded a rare hot takes episode. In addition to Ethan sharing his thoughts, we invited Deepti Doshi from New Public and Nathan Schneider on to talk about the need for platforms that bolster democracy.

Brandon Silverman developed a news analytics tool called Crowdtangle that was so good at tracking popular stories on Facebook that the company acquired it. Today on Reimagining the Internet, Brandon tells us how he’s working to regulate his former employer. Transcript Ethan Zuckerman: Hey, everybody. Welcome back to Reimagining The Internet. I remain Ethan Zuckerman. […]

What the hell is "adversarial interopability"? Science fiction writer and prolific blogger Cory Doctorow thinks it's going to set you free from Facebook, letting you take your data and pictures wherever you want to go. And he believes surveillance capitalism is standing in your way.

T.L. Taylor, an expert in gaming research, shares her insights on safety and social trends in gaming. She discusses how gaming spaces reflect broader societal issues and highlights initiatives addressing toxicity, including racism and misogyny. Taylor emphasizes the importance of the Good Luck Have Fun (GLHF) pledge, fostering positive behavior among gamers. She also explores the complexities of community moderation and the role of collaboration in creating safer environments. The conversation is an eye-opening look at the future of online gaming culture.

this week to share an episode from our friends' podcast. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has an excellent show hosted by Cindy Cohn and Danny O'Brien called How to Fix the Internet. Our show has a lot in common with theirs – in fact it has so much in common that they had Ethan on their show back in January. We're that interview today, and if you enjoy it, be sure to subscribe to How to Fix the Internet for more.