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IMO tech has simply become the dominant form of media. People who would earlier spend 3 hours/day watching TV might now spend 4 hours/day on Netflix/FB/Twitter

IMO tech has simply become the dominant form of media. People who would earlier spend 3 hours/day watching TV might now spend 4 hours/day on Netflix/FB/Twitter etc. The fundamental problem is not tech, it is the incentives of those who pay for the media we consume. Advertisers pay for media and it is in their interest to make the medium as addictive as possible. And when there is enough money to be made as an employee or shareholder of ad companies like FB/Google, people look the other way as long as they benefit. The root problem is simple greed, and its a very old problem. Things are not going to change anytime soon as long as people are able to rationalize doing a small amount of evil for enough money/prestige. (not to say I wouldn't do the same) Thats why these discussions seem pointless to me. Ultimately the people paying/investing in a company decide how a company operates, and they do not give a f* about the next article telling us how bad the product is. Even ordinary shareholders will happily buy FB stock if its projected to go up, nevermind why that is. When you operate within an economic system that is built solely to optimize revenue... it optimizes revenue, at all social costs.

snowpanda 9y ago
I agree with you, but I think it's more than just greed. These companies consist of many employees. Depending on how you look at it, all those employees are contributing to the problem indirectly by working for the company. So one question that comes to mind is are these employees greedy too? What about the interns that get minimum wage? Are they not simply trying to make a living? So I think the first part of your comment is more accurate in the sense that people rationalize things. In that regard, I think we should look at schools emphasizing values in terms of work ethics. When I was in college I took a business ethics class. I realized that was the first time in my entire education that I was learning things about anything even remotely related to this subject, not to mention, the class was optional. That's a sad thing to happen in only the last years before entering the permanent work force.
- zaptheimpaler 9y ago
  The fact is if someone works for one of those companies, they are contributing to the problem. Maybe out of greed, maybe necessity, maybe ignorance. Moral judgements aside, it really doesn't matter why as long as they choose to work there - the company still benefits and the cycle still continues. I'm sure teaching ethics would help.. but then again I don't think all the recent revelations about FB/Google/Twitter have done anything to make hiring more difficult for them. At most they pay 10-20% more and get the people they need. Parts of wall street are unethical and yet they get all the employees they need given the right salary.
intended 9y ago
I think there is a great truth to what you said, but the reduction of Tech to just media hides a set of critical and novel dangers in doing so. Tech provides a new set of tools - both finely grained, invasive, and mass produce-able - which target areas of human existent earlier protected just because of how arcane and nebulous they were. As human beings, we have many tendencies that are unguarded for buffer overflows, or malicious code injections. With these tools, and corporate/shareholder incentives - firms and teams will run amok. Its no longer just 1 way media, its now very close to mind invading media. Sadly the only solution seems to be to ditch the smart phone whole.
- zaptheimpaler 9y ago
  You are saying tech is a more powerful tool than traditional media. I agree. But the purpose the tool serves in society is a question of how people wield it, not how powerful it is.

snowpanda 9y ago

I agree with you, but I think it's more than just greed. These companies consist of many employees. Depending on how you look at it, all those employees are contributing to the problem indirectly by working for the company. So one question that comes to mind is are these employees greedy too? What about the interns that get minimum wage? Are they not simply trying to make a living? So I think the first part of your comment is more accurate in the sense that people rationalize things. In that regard, I think we should look at schools emphasizing values in terms of work ethics. When I was in college I took a business ethics class. I realized that was the first time in my entire education that I was learning things about anything even remotely related to this subject, not to mention, the class was optional. That's a sad thing to happen in only the last years before entering the permanent work force.

zaptheimpaler 9y ago
The fact is if someone works for one of those companies, they are contributing to the problem. Maybe out of greed, maybe necessity, maybe ignorance. Moral judgements aside, it really doesn't matter why as long as they choose to work there - the company still benefits and the cycle still continues. I'm sure teaching ethics would help.. but then again I don't think all the recent revelations about FB/Google/Twitter have done anything to make hiring more difficult for them. At most they pay 10-20% more and get the people they need. Parts of wall street are unethical and yet they get all the employees they need given the right salary.

intended 9y ago

I think there is a great truth to what you said, but the reduction of Tech to just media hides a set of critical and novel dangers in doing so. Tech provides a new set of tools - both finely grained, invasive, and mass produce-able - which target areas of human existent earlier protected just because of how arcane and nebulous they were. As human beings, we have many tendencies that are unguarded for buffer overflows, or malicious code injections. With these tools, and corporate/shareholder incentives - firms and teams will run amok. Its no longer just 1 way media, its now very close to mind invading media. Sadly the only solution seems to be to ditch the smart phone whole.

zaptheimpaler 9y ago
You are saying tech is a more powerful tool than traditional media. I agree. But the purpose the tool serves in society is a question of how people wield it, not how powerful it is.