Episode description

When the first website went live just over 25 years ago, there was hope that the internet would change life for the better. These days, though, there is deep unease about the direction the internet is taking. Allegations that data firm Cambridge Analytica used personal information harvested from more than 50 million Facebook users without their permission to target US voters with tailored - sometimes misleading - messaging highlights how technology is infiltrating democracy. This week the US Federal Trade Commission said it would investigate Facebook's privacy practices and the company said it would overhaul its privacy tools. The internet is now controlled by a handful of companies and how they acquire and use personal data is poorly understood. They have disrupted the way we shop, work, and live. So how did we get to a place where so few players have so much power, and are these companies still serving the public interest? Carrie Gracie and a panel of experts discuss whether we can change direction. And if we did want to build a different internet from the one we're hurtling towards, what would it look like anyway?