Power User explores how technology and the internet are upending our lives and the world around us. Each week, tech journalist Taylor Lorenz explores everything...
Chair of the Federal Communications Commission Brendan Carr has quietly positioned himself as one of the most dangerous figures in the Trump administrationās ongoing war on free speech.Carr is using his government position to intimidate journalists, punish media outlets, and pressure tech companies into cracking down on free expression. And he has done all of this while building his profile as a "free speech" influencer on X.Ā If left unchecked, Carrās censorship crusade could fundamentally reshape our information ecosystem and have massive consequences for anyone seeking to speak freely without fear of government retaliation.Ā Mike Masnick, founder of TechDirt, joins me to break down who Carr is, why his agenda is so dangerous, what exactly he's doing to dismantle free speech protections in America, and how it all fits into a much bigger movement to control who can speak freely online.Ā SUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenzFOLLOW ME ON IG: https://instagram.com/taylorlorenzREAD TECHDIRT: https://www.techdirt.com
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54:23
The Right-Wing Plot to āMurderā a Free Press
In 1964, the Supreme Court passed a landmark case called The New York Times v Sullivan, that established the right to a free press by protecting the media against erroneous lawsuits.Ā The ruling has been instrumental in allowing journalists to scrutinize public figures, powerful corporations, and political leaders without undue fear of litigation.But now, that landmark decision is in jeopardy thanks to a coordinated right wing legal effort that's been decades in the making.Ā David Enrich's forthcoming book, Murder the Truth: Fear, the First Amendment, and a Secret Campaign to Protect the Powerful, delves into the organized efforts by elite individuals to challenge longstanding free speech protections and suppress dissenting voices.David joins me discuss the origins of this legal assault, its implications for investigative journalism in both new media and old, and what this all means for the future of free speech in America.āBUY DAVID'S BOOK: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/murder-the-truth-david-enrichSUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER: https://www.usermag.coSUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenz
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43:37
How Pop Culture News is Radicalizing You
Have you been bombarded with non stop content about Blake Lively vs Justin Baldoni? The Misogyny Slop Ecosystem is a sprawling network of online creators and communities that manufacture and boost smear campaigns against women who speak out for women's rights, or have been victims of gender-based crimes like sexual assault, harassment, or abuse.Ā Though you might have never heard of it, the misogyny slop ecosystem has radically transformed the online landscape and the content that you see. It plays a central role in the alt-right pipeline for women.Ā I talked to Ophie Dokie, the brilliant content creator and commentator who coined the term, to discuss the origins of misogyny slop, what creators and communities make up this ecosystem, how it became so insanely profitable, and how all of it ultimately funnels women directly into the far right media machine.Ā SUBSCRIBE TO TAYLOR ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenzSUBSCRIBE TO OPHIE ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/@ophie-dokie
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51:35
How the 00s changed the tech world forever
The 2000s were a formative decade for tech. From the dot com bubble to the rise of social media, to the chaotic days of early blogging, the iMac, and emergence of the PayPal Mafia, the 00s shaped our online world in ways weāre still reckoning with.Colette Shade is the author of the brand new bestselling bookĀ Y2K: How the 2000s Became Everything (Essays on the Future That Never Was). Today she joins Taylor to unpack the lasting impact of the 00s on our tech landscape.Ā Colette gives a nostalgic but critical account of the decade that set the stage for the digital revolution. She discusses what we can learn from the golden age of dial-up internet and tech optimism, and how the aughts ultimately set the stage for todayās hyper-surveilled, algorithm-driven world.Ā SUBSCRIBE TO POWER USER ON YOUTUBE:Ā https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenzĀ
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27:57
Elon Musk and the Billionaire Baby Boom
Last week, it was revealed that Elon Musk had welcomed his 13th child into the world several months ago with a conservative influencer. But heās not the only tech mogul fixated on boosting birth rates. In this episode, journalist Julia Black joins Taylor to discuss the rise of pronatalism in Silicon Valleyāa growing movement encouraging people to have as many babies as possible. They unpack why tech billionaires are so suddenly obsessed with having children and how their vision of the future is entangled with right-wing ideology, eugenics, and genetic engineering. From embryo selection to potential threats to reproductive rights, Julia and Taylor explore the unsettling ways pronatalist thinking is creeping into politics and culture.What does this mean for the future of parenthood, womenās autonomy, and the broader social landscape? And is this really about saving humanityāor something else entirely?SUBSCRIBE TO POWER USER ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenz
Power User explores how technology and the internet are upending our lives and the world around us. Each week, tech journalist Taylor Lorenz explores everything from online fame to emerging platforms, viral phenomena, the creator economy, and much more. Tune in every Thursday for the most influential stories that Silicon Valley often ignores.
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