This is an audio version of an essay on my substack, Process This. The essay explores how digital platforms have transformed human experience into a new form of colonialism. It discusses the historical evolution of the internet from a decentralized space to one controlled by tech giants, and highlights the data extraction, surveillance, and algorithmic governance that dominate modern digital spaces. By drawing parallels to historical colonialism, the essay outlines the systematic ways in which platforms explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate alternative ways of being social. It also examines the rise of a new digital aristocracy in Silicon Valley and the erosion of personal autonomy. Finally, it explores emerging forms of resistance and reimagination, emphasizing the need for digital wisdom, community-owned platforms, and new forms of digital literacy to reclaim human autonomy and genuine connection.

I hope you enjoy it and consider supporting my work by joining 80k+ other people on Process This. You can READ and respond to the essay here.

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PODCAST –The Tech Takeover: Reimagining Connection in a Digital World on TNT where Tripp gets Bo’s input on this essay
BOOK – Data Grab: The New Colonialism of Big Tech and How to Fight Back by Ulises A. Mejias & Nick Couldry
BOOK – The Space of the World: Can Human Solidarity Survive Social Media and What If It Can’t? By Nick Couldry
LECTURE – AI and the Tragedy of the Commons: a decolonial perspective with Ulises A. Mejias
LECTURE – The Corporatization of Social Space by Nick Couldry

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The New Colonialism: Power, Data, and the Transformation of Human Experience