The Internet Is Kind of a Predatory Cesspit Now
The author argues that the modern internet has shifted from a human-centric public square to a predatory ecosystem optimized for extracting value from user vulnerabilities. They contend that the current business model relies on addiction and the exploitation of ordinary users.
Why it matters
This critique reflects growing societal concern over the 'attention economy' and the negative psychological impacts of algorithmic platforms.
Reading Mode Wider policy The Internet Is Kind of a Predatory Cesspit Now I’m a kid of the 90s, and I still remember the early internet. It was slow, ugly, unreliable, and full of cranks, a strange world of wheezing dial-up modems, Usenet flamewars, <marquee> tags, and dancing babies. It was also stubbornly alive and human. People built websites about Babylon 5, model rockets, train timetables, shareware, and whatever else had colonised their minds. Most of it had no business model. That was the literal point. The web felt like a public square assembled by obsessive amateurs.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in