MEGANETS

Who is in control of our massive social media networks? According to this thought-provoking book, no one.

For the many Americans who feel that the past 15 years has been an endless cascade of crises and confusion, Auerbach presents some interesting observations. The author worked as a software engineer at Microsoft and Google, so he provides expertise as well as an understanding of tech companies. The central cause of the chaos is the rise of the titular meganets. The author defines a meganet as a “persistent, evolving, and opaque data network joining humans and computers.” Facebook is the best illustrative case, but there are others, and they share the characteristics of unprecedented growth in size and speed. Despite armies of programmers and incredibly complicated algorithms, as well as CEOs and governing boards, control remains elusive. The pace at which information is input, disseminated, and copied defies attempts to impose order. Even if Mark Zuckerberg and others wanted to prevent the spread of disruption, trolling, and disinformation, they are no longer capable of doing so. Determining which information is valid and useful is effectively impossible when every view has not only contrary data, but a slew of opposing opinions. The other side of this is the collection of huge amounts of data on individuals, with sorting and collation done by sophisticated AI technology. Auerbach takes the view that AI is not as reliable and unbiased as many want to believe, and he explores several instances where it has gone frighteningly wrong. Even more, it is a feature and not a glitch that the feedback process promotes extreme views and belligerent rhetoric. Auerbach proposes technical ideas to tame meganets, but they don’t sound persuasive. “We search for where the power really lies, when it does not lie anywhere,” he says. “Or else it lies everywhere at once, which is no more help.”

A disturbing examination of how social media technology spun out of control and what it means for the future.