<
https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/10/17/1081194/how-to-fix-the-internet-online-discourse>
"
We’re in a very strange moment for the internet. We all know it’s broken.
That’s not news. But there’s something in the air—a vibe shift, a sense that
things are about to change. For the first time in years, it feels as though
something truly new and different might be happening with the way we
communicate online. The stranglehold that the big social platforms have had on
us for the last decade is weakening. The question is: What do we want to come
next?
There’s a sort of common wisdom that the internet is irredeemably bad, toxic, a
rash of “hellsites” to be avoided. That social platforms, hungry to profit off
your data, opened a Pandora’s box that cannot be closed. Indeed, there are
truly awful things that happen on the internet, things that make it especially
toxic for people from groups disproportionately targeted with online harassment
and abuse. Profit motives led platforms to ignore abuse too often, and they
also enabled the spread of misinformation, the decline of local news, the rise
of hyperpartisanship, and entirely new forms of bullying and bad behavior. All
of that is true, and it barely scratches the surface.
But the internet has also provided a haven for marginalized groups and a place
for support, advocacy, and community. It offers information at times of crisis.
It can connect you with long-lost friends. It can make you laugh. It can send
you a pizza. It’s duality, good and bad, and I refuse to toss out the
dancing-baby GIF with the tubgirl-dot-png bathwater. The internet is worth
fighting for because despite all the misery, there’s still so much good to be
found there. And yet, fixing online discourse is the definition of a hard
problem. But look. Don’t worry. I have an idea."
Via
Future Crunch:
<
https://futurecrunch.com/good-news-women-rights-france-ntds-africa-bears-europe/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
