Professor José van Dijck on today's 'platform society'

Summary

An analysis of how major digital platforms have become foundational to modern society, creating complex dependencies and challenges for public values and governance.

Highlights

The Rise of Platform Society00:00:12

The book 'The Platform Society' explores how society has become heavily dependent on the 'big five' platforms (GAFAM) for both private and public sectors, including news, urban transport, education, and health.

Data as Currency and Influence00:04:02

Users exchange personal data for free services, allowing platforms to create detailed profiles and gain control over data flows, which are then used to develop AI and analytical tools.

Challenges to Public Values00:06:00

The speaker identifies core public values like privacy, transparency, and accuracy that are threatened when global corporations from Silicon Valley dictate the organization of national democratic processes.

Responsibility and Global vs. Local00:09:08

Discusses the shared responsibility for issues like fake news and hate speech, noting that while platforms have scaled up globally, they struggle to scale down to address local political and social contexts.