Techdirt
Techdirt
The Techdirt Podcast, hosted by Michael Masnick.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 28, 2024 • 10min
Ctrl-Alt-Speech: Elon Musk & Stonetoss (Teaser)
Check out Ctrl-Alt-Speech, Mike Masnick's brand new podcast with Ben Whitelaw, creator of the Everything in Moderation newsletter.
In this teaser excerpt from last week's episode, Mike and Ben discuss the latest curious and contradictory content moderation decisions by Elon Musk, and a recent article about the risks and challenges associated with how different countries approach internet regulation.
Listen to the whole episode covering all the week's biggest news in online speech - and get ready for this week's episode, releasing tomorrow - by visiting ctrlaltspeech.com or subscribing to Ctrl-Alt-Speech on your podcast platform of choice!
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ctrl-alt-speech/id1734530193
Overcast: https://overcast.fm/itunes1734530193
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1N3tvLxUTCR7oTdUgUCQvc
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/93842011-b662-430a-8e51-218433a7e647
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcky6_VTbejGkZ7aHqqc3ZjufeEw2AS7Z
More: https://www.ctrlaltspeech.com/
Mar 26, 2024 • 1h 4min
Cognitive Liberty Is The End Goal Of Decentralization
Danny O'Brien, a key figure in founding Techdirt, joins for a discussion on decentralization and 'cognitive liberty'. Topics include trends in online content creation, managing information overload, mobile setup evolution, terminal and instrumental values, cognitive liberty in modern tech, data privacy rights, and the challenges of decentralization.

Mar 18, 2024 • 14min
Ctrl-Alt-Speech: The TikTok Ban (Teaser)
Check out Ctrl-Alt-Speech, Mike Masnick's brand new podcast with Ben Whitelaw, creator of the Everything in Moderation newsletter.
In this teaser excerpt from the debut episode of Ctrl-Alt-Speech, Mike and Ben discuss the US bill that aims to ban TikTok, or at least force ByteDance to divest from it.
Listen to the whole episode, covering all the week's biggest news in online speech, by visiting ctrlaltspeech.com or subscribing to Ctrl-Alt-Speech on your podcast platform of choice!
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ctrl-alt-speech/id1734530193
Overcast: https://overcast.fm/itunes1734530193
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1N3tvLxUTCR7oTdUgUCQvc
Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/93842011-b662-430a-8e51-218433a7e647
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcky6_VTbejGkZ7aHqqc3ZjufeEw2AS7Z
More: https://www.ctrlaltspeech.com/
Mar 13, 2024 • 44min
Gaming Like It's 1928!
As is tradition, now that we've announced the winners of our latest public domain game jam, Gaming Like It's 1928, it's time for a special episode of the podcast taking a closer look at them. Just like in past years, Mike is joined by myself and our game design partner Randy Lubin to discuss our thoughts on the winners in all six categories, and a bunch of other great games that didn't quite make the cut.
17 snips
Mar 5, 2024 • 58min
Checking In On Bluesky With Jay Graber
Discussing the progress of Bluesky, a decentralized social network challenging platforms like Facebook. Exploring user empowerment and privacy, balancing centralization and decentralization, and the federation approach. Also, touching on monetization strategies and the comprehensive vision of the Bluesky project.
Feb 21, 2024 • 49min
KOSA Isn't Just Wrong About The Internet, It's Wrong About Child Safety
Critiquing child safety laws like KOSA, the podcast explores the challenges of protecting kids online. Maureen Flatley discusses the limitations of current solutions and emphasizes the need for stricter laws and consistent protections. The conversation dives into mandated reporting on child sexual abuse material by tech companies, highlighting the struggles faced in implementation and the delicate balance of liability. Insights into Congressional reactions and the role of law enforcement in prioritizing child safety initiatives are also discussed, along with the debate on tech companies and children's mental health.
Feb 13, 2024 • 38min
How To Actually Help Kids Online
Discussion on the importance of meeting kids where they are online, exploring the creation of a digital mental health platform for youth, emphasizing targeted interventions and peer support, online support strategies on platforms like Discord and Twitch, empowering dynamic interventions for youth mental health, and addressing online problems with practical solutions
Feb 6, 2024 • 1h 2min
Is the Internet Killing Culture? (No. Don’t Be Stupid.)
A couple weeks ago, we released the 2024 edition of our Sky Is Rising report about the state of the entertainment industries. Last week, Mike and I joined Corbin Barthold on Techfreedom's Tech Policy Podcast for a discussion about the report and, more broadly, the state of culture in the internet era and the conversations that surround it. You can listen to the whole conversation here on this week's episode of the Techdirt Podcast.
Feb 1, 2024 • 39min
The Data Transfer Initiative After One Year
Back in April, we were joined on the podcast by Chris Riley, the Executive Director of the new nonprofit Data Transfer Initiative that aimed to promote data portability and empower users to transfer their data from one service to another. Today, the Initiative has released its first annual report, and Chris is back on the podcast for a discussion all about how things are going, and what's on deck for 2024.
Data Transfer Initiative Annual Report 2023 (PDF): https://dtinit.org/assets/DTI-Annual-Report-2023.pdf
6 snips
Jan 25, 2024 • 1h 3min
Protocols, Not Platforms
A panel discussion on decentralized and federated social media, exploring the need for open protocols and moving away from walled gardens. Highlights include the potential of AI tools for safer social media, the challenges of open source software, and the importance of clear communication and proactive actions during development. Also discussed are the challenges of internet governance and the future of user mobility and account portability.


