Musk acquired a 9.2% stake in Twitter through Getty Images.Jim Watson/AFP
Researcher Shoshana Zuboff told the Washington Post that having a person control Twitter is “inconsistent with democracy.”
The unregulated collection of data on user behavior means the social media industry has an incredible impact on real-world events.
“This is a disaster, and it’s not just about Elon Musk, but he’s kind of putting it on steroids,” she said.
Elon Musk’s plans to privatize Twitter have sparked concern from privacy experts and social media researchers, including a former Harvard professor who told the Washington Post it was “a disaster” for user privacy, one person to have control over the social platform.
Former professor and author of The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, Shoshana Zuboff, said huge advertising revenues and unregulated data collection on user behavior have transformed the social media industry, which now has incredible impact on real-world events.
Because content on social media platforms can influence public opinion and lead to changes in behavior, the people who control the sites have tremendous power, she said.
Putting that power in the hands of one person is “incompatible with democracy,” she said.
“There’s just no checks and balances from internal or external forces,” Zuboff told the Washington Post.
Should Musk take over Twitter, the Tesla CEO would have near-total control over a set of user data “unlike anything that has ever existed, allowing interference with the integrity of individual behavior as well as the integrity of collective behavior.” ‘ Zuboff said.
“This is a disaster, and it’s not just about Elon Musk, he’s kind of putting it on steroids,” Zuboff told the Washington Post.
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