Hi John— have you seen the documentary The Social Dilemma being promoted on Netflix?

It’s an interesting film, and can be a good introduction for those looking to better understand how social media companies like Facebook and YouTube really operate behind the scenes.

But to be frank, it also gets a lot of things wrong, and in many ways leaves out the voices of the people who are actually most affected by Big Tech company’s abusive business practices like data harvesting, microtargeting, and algorithmic manipulation of what we see. The doc seems to largely miss the ways that the free and open Internet has changed our society for the better, and given more people a voice than ever before.

I wrote a little Twitter thread about it here that seems to be resonating with a lot of folks, if you want to check it out and share (you don’t have to be on Twitter to read it).

Here at Fight for the Future we’ve been fighting back against Big Tech and Big Telecom monopolies since before it was cool :-)

We hold corporate goliaths like Facebook, Google, Amazon, Comcast and AT&T accountable and force them to change their worst practices
We focus on defending the rights of ordinary Internet users rather than tech giants or the interests of politicians and elites
We push for legislation to ban harmful practices like facial recognition, data harvesting and microtargeted advertising
We oppose misguided proposals that threaten freedom of expression and online privacy and beat back policies that could lead to censorship and surveillance
And we’re darn good at it! In recent years we’ve racked up an impressive list of victories, mobilized millions of people to take action, and organized many of the largest online protests in human history.

So, while I have a lot of critiques about The Social Dilemma, I suppose in the end I’m glad it’s getting people talking about issues of tech policy. But we’re not just talking. We spend every single day DOING SOMETHING about these problems and fighting for everyone’s most basic rights in the digital age.

If you want to help make our crucial work possible, please sign up today to become a monthly donor to Fight for the Future. As an intentionally small organization that consistently gets results, even a small donation can make a huge difference.

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If you can’t commit to donating monthly, even a small one-time donation can really help. We’re chugging along but with many folks out of work due to the pandemic, every donation, no matter the size, goes a long way. Click here to give any amount.

And if you watched The Social Dilemma, reply and let us know what you thought! Do you agree with my take? Have a different critique? Let us know. We’ll read your replies.

For a better Internet,

-Evan at Fight for the Future

Fight for the Future works to protect your rights in the digital age.