Why Every Platform Betrays You

“The smallest government you can have is determined by the largest corporation you’re willing to tolerate.” Cory Doctorow didn’t just coin “enshittification”—he mapped the precise mechanics of how every platform you depend on will eventually turn against you, and why voting with your wallet won’t save you.

“The smallest government you can have is determined by the largest corporation you're willing to tolerate. And if you want a smaller government, have that government first and foremost enforce antitrust law.”

— Cory Doctorow

Timestamps

  • 00:00 Cold open: Mark Zuckerberg's Metaverse pivot as peak enshittification
  • 03:53 The three stages of enshittification using Facebook as case study
  • 09:48 Why this isn't collusion—it's unshackled business seeking its ideal form
  • 14:16 How tech consolidation enables regulatory capture
  • 26:12 Protocols vs platforms: Why Bitcoin isn't the answer
  • 33:06 Interoperability: How Facebook killed MySpace with the same tactics we need now
  • 37:05 AT&T's 69-year breakup and why anti-monopoly law matters
  • 44:53 The post-American internet: Why other nations will jailbreak US tech
  • 52:37 Technology as alchemy vs science—why secrecy makes everything worse
  • 58:42 Hollowing out platforms vs shattering them
  • 1:02:01 Bright spots: Digital Markets Act and bipartisan interoperability momentum
  • 1:05:09 Good regulation vs induced mistakes—the UK water system catastrophe
  • 1:10:30 Practical advice: Join EFF, stop agonizing, organize

Resources

About Cory Doctorow

Cory Doctorow is a science fiction author, activist, and journalist who works for the Electronic Frontier Foundation and edits the daily blog Pluralistic. He coined 'enshittification,' named the American Dialect Society's 2023 Word of the Year, and has authored over 30 books including the recent Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It. A former European Affairs Coordinator for EFF who helped establish the UK Open Rights Group, he holds honorary doctorates from York University and the Open University.

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