<\/p>\n
The plot for this summer\u2019s blockbuster, Oppenheimer, concerns the quest to split the atom and harness the ensuing chain reaction. Few forces are more powerful than the atomic bomb in irrevocably altering life on earth save for one: people power. When you upend society by wresting control from the 1% and handing it to the majority, unpredictable things happen.<\/p>\n
Sometimes beautiful, sometimes ugly, the will of the masses is a chaotic force that defies attempts to tame it. Hollywood knows only too well what can happen when the silent majority finds its voice: The recent Writers Guild of America strike has seen creatives more accustomed to putting pen to paper placing voice to megaphone, resulting in hostile confrontations on the picket line.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, on social media, too, the creators are revolting against their overlords. Web users \u2014 the ones responsible for creating the memes, talking points, jokes and viral videos that fuel Silicon Valley startups\u2019 billion-dollar valuations \u2014 are the currency that makes digital networks, well, work<\/em>. Even if there\u2019s no currency being returned to their pockets, no matter how many views they accrue or impressions they generate.<\/p>\n Anxiety about social media isn\u2019t new. Nor is it confined to monetization concerns. The worry runs deeper, encompassing everything from opaque data reselling practices to rampant censorship and de-platforming. This summer alone has seen Meta fined US$1.3 billion<\/a> by the European Union for mishandling user data, followed by a Reddit moderator rebellion<\/a> over perceived lack of control and, just last week, another fiasco with Reddit moderators accused of insider trading<\/a> following the announcement of the end of its community token program<\/a>, not to mention a feeling of hopelessness about X, the platform formerly named Twitter, over new owner Elon Musk\u2019s capricious decision-making on the fly.<\/p>\n On the one hand, X has been more receptive to free speech since Musk took over. On the other, its blue check verification system has been a mess \u2014 and don\u2019t get users started on the platform\u2019s rebrand and new name. When Musk is playing benevolent dictator, he appears happy to take feedback on board and promise to direct greater revenue towards top creators. The rest of the time, he\u2019s a bull in a china shop, careening from one screw-up to another.<\/p>\nSocial media\u2019s Great Malaise<\/h4>\n