Does Big Tech Control Our Political Future?

Internet companies are engaged in a fragile dance.

Brett Jordan / Unsplash

It’s no secret that the Internet has changed everything. Once considered a wonky fad among tech nerds, the worldwide web has quickly expanded its power over our economic and political life.

I experienced the Smartphone Revolution during my adolescence. In less than a decade, people went from watching television reports and late-night talk shows (even reading physical newspapers!) to consuming information through social media, YouTube, and podcasts.

I first got engaged in politics thanks to the Internet. Poking around on my iPad, I’d find news from outlets like NBC and CNN, but I’d also hear opinions from political commentators like Kyle Kulinski, Ana Kasparian, and (unfortunately) Ben Shapiro. Google would recommend whatever was engaging — an algorithm akin to an attention meritocracy.

The public square was expanded. Criticism was democratized. The pace of the news cycle was accelerated. These were the touchstones of the early Internet.

It’s easy to forget that this new technology initially brought new hope for democracy. Social media helped launch major protests against corrupt autocrats in the Arab Spring. In America, the Occupy Wall Street movement formed out of digital activism. It…