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Tech Won't Save Us

Latest episodes

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Jun 11, 2020 • 41min

Tech Giants Don't Care About Black Lives w/ Edward Ongweso Jr.

Paris Marx is joined by Edward Ongweso Jr. to discuss how the labor practices, tech products, and global supply chains of tech companies prove they don't care about Black lives — regardless of what they've said in recent statements. Edward also explains why we should defund the police.Edward Ongweso Jr. is a staff writer at Vice. He recently wrote about tech companies' response to Black Lives Matter and what it would mean to defund the police.  Follow Edward on Twitter as @bigblackjacobin.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.Support the show
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Jun 4, 2020 • 41min

Art is More Than Ones and Zeroes w/ Nika Roza Danilova

Paris Marx is joined by Nika Roza Danilova to discuss how COVID-19 is affecting artists, the privileged worldview of tech, the human essence of art, and why that can’t be replicated by artificial intelligence. She also provides advice on how to best support artists and her hopes for what a better world for artists might look like.Nika Roza Danilova makes music under the name Zola Jesus. Her fifth studio album, Okovi, was released in 2017. Read her essay “On AI and Silicon Fascist Privilege” for more insight on her perspective, and check out Koir, a website she co-founded to help artists livestream their performances. Follow Nika on Twitter as @zolajesus.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.Support the show
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May 28, 2020 • 37min

A Cooperative Vision for Technological Innovation w/ Dan Hind

Paris Marx is joined by Dan Hind to discuss the problems with the existing tech industry and its links to the state, and his proposal for reorienting technological development to promote human flourishing and a cooperative economy.Dan Hind is the author of “The Return of the Public: Democracy, Power and the Case for Media Reform” and recently wrote a report called “The British Digital Cooperative: A New Model Public Sector Institution” for The Next System Project and Common Wealth. He’s also written for the Guardian, the New Socialist, and the New Scientist. Follow Dan on Twitter as @danhind.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.Support the show
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May 21, 2020 • 38min

Uber's War on Drivers w/ Veena Dubal

Paris Marx is joined by Veena Dubal to discuss how Uber's misclassification of drivers of independent contractors denies them rights and protections granted to other workers; how that's causing even more problems during the pandemic; the ongoing fight in California to get drivers recognized as employees under Assembly Bill 5; and how ride-hailing services ushered in a second wave of deregulation in the taxi industry.Veena Dubal is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of California, Hastings. Her work focuses on the intersection of law, tech, and precarious worker. She recently wrote about how Uber drivers are faring during the pandemic for The Guardian and the longer history of taxi regulation for Logic Magazine. Follow Veena on Twitter as @veenadubal.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.Support the show
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May 19, 2020 • 38min

How Tech Platforms Affect Our Digital Lives w/ Joanne McNeil

Paris Marx is joined by Joanne McNeil to discuss how our experience online has evolved over the past three decades, the class backgrounds of tech founders, how the AIDS crisis robbed us an important contribution to the early web, and whether COVID-19 will change how we use platforms in the future.Joanne McNeil is the author of “Lurking: How a Person Became a User.” She has written for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, WIRED, the Baffler, and more. Follow Joanne on Twitter as @jomc.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.Support the show
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May 14, 2020 • 45min

History Shows Radical Futures Are Possible w/ Lizzie O'Shea

Paris Marx is joined by Lizzie O’Shea to discuss how learning about history can empower us to imagine more radical futures, how COVID-19 could create the opportunity to demand a better world, and how the praise for essential workers could help us rethink our ideas about work and the economy.Lizzie O’Shea is the author of “Future Histories: What Ada Lovelace, Tom Paine, and the Paris Commune Can Teach Us about Digital Technology.” She is also the founder and chair of Digital Rights Watch. She recently wrote about how there is no such thing as unskilled labor for The Baffler. Follow Lizzie on Twitter as @Lizzie_OShea.The photo of the Paris Commune mentioned in the episode can be found here.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.Support the show
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May 12, 2020 • 49min

Tech Billionaires Think They’re Better Than You w/ Rob Larson

Paris Marx is joined by Rob Larson to discuss how tech billionaires use philanthropy to massage their images, how they're creating a world that leaves nearly everyone else worse off, and how we need to respond with an online socialism to bring tech platforms under worker control.Rob Larson is the author of “Bit Tyrants: The Political Economy of Silicon Valley” and an economics professor at Tacoma Community College. He also recently wrote about how billionaire-funded philanthropy is a public-relations scam for Jacobin and how the tech platforms are on their best behavior during COVID-19 for Current Affairs. Follow Rob on Twitter as @IronicProfessor.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.Support the show
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May 7, 2020 • 44min

Fighting Back Against the Tech Monopolies w/ Grace Blakeley

Paris Marx is joined by Grace Blakeley to discuss how neoliberal capitalism benefits the tech monopolies, how they’re thriving as the COVID-19 pandemic continues, and how workers fight back after the defeat of Bernie Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn.Grace Blakeley is the author of “Stolen: How to Save the World from Financialisation,” a staff writer at Tribune Magazine, and serves on the Labour Party’s National Policy Forum. She also recently wrote about how COVID-19 is accelerating tech monopolization for Novara Media. Follow Grace on Twitter as @graceblakeley.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.Support the show
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May 5, 2020 • 45min

Elon Musk is a Cult Leader w/ Ilari Kaila

Paris Marx is joined by Ilari Kaila to talk about Elon Musk's latest unhinged tweeting episode, his self-serving calls to end COVID-19 lockdowns, and how the outlandish promises he makes and stories he makes result in a cult-like devotion by those who follow him.Ilari Kaila is a Finnish-American writer and Composer-in-Residence at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. His work has been published by Aeon Magazine, Jacobin Magazine, Muftah Magazine, the Finnish Broadcasting Company, and others. Read his blog post about how Elon Musk is a cult leader at LimitedHangoutBlog.com and follow him on Twitter as @IlariKaila.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.Support the show
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Apr 30, 2020 • 55min

How Tech Distracts Us From the Bigger Picture w/ Bianca Wylie

Paris Marx is joined by Bianca Wylie to talk about the response to COVID-19, how governments’ emphasis on tech solutions ignores (and potentially entrenches) social inequalities, and how we might take control of technology to ensure it works for the public good.Bianca Wylie is the co-founder of Digital Public and Tech Reset Canada, and a Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation. Follow Bianca on Twitter as @biancawylie.After listening to the interview, consider reading Chris Gilliard on luxury surveillance, Jay Pitter on forgotten densities, and Nora Loreto on long-term care facilities.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.Support the show

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