Air Date 9/9/2022

Today, we take a look at platforms, goods, and business models in the modern landscape of the digital marketplace. We start by questioning the morality of engaging in given platforms that cause harm - cryptocurrencies' role in crime and Facebook's role in destabilizing society, for instance - and then examine virtual products and virtual talents, the movement demanding the right to repair, and the coming world of digital art produced by artificial intelligence.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message at 202-999-3991 or email [email protected] 

Transcript

Join our Discord community!

OUR AFFILIATE LINKS:

ExpressVPN.com/BestOfTheLeft GET INTERNET PRIVACY WITH EXPRESS VPN!

BestOfTheLeft.com/Libro SUPPORT INDIE BOOKSHOPS, GET YOUR AUDIOBOOK FROM LIBRO!

SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Digital Life Is a Moral Mess - The United States of Anxiety - Air Date 8-22-22

Then, Shirin Ghaffary, senior reporter at Recode and co-host of the podcast Land of The Giants, shares the story of Facebook, and why it has been so hard of them to respond to the damage their technology has created.

Ch. 2: Digital rapper FN Meka and the new era of digital Blackface - There Are No Girls on the Internet - Air Date 8-30-22

"AI rapper" FN Meka isn't human - he's a digital creation of a company. But that didn't stop him from getting a record deal! He briefly became the first digital rapper to sign a deal with a major recording company.

Ch. 3: The Right to Repair with Aaron Perzanowski - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 5-10-22

Do we really own the devices we buy? ‘The Right to Repair’ author Aaron Perzanowki joins Adam to explain how companies are using their power to control the products we buy from them, even after they’ve left the store, and prevent us from repairing them.

Ch. 4: The Streaming TV Bloodbath - What Next - Air Date 8-28-22

Shows are disappearing. Staff are getting axed. Is It greed, or necessary for the networks' survival?

Ch. 5: CAN THEY DO THAT? | PlayStation to Remove "Owned" Movies - Hoeg Law - Air Date 7-7-22

Buying digital content has never been easier. Between Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo and more, your favorite game, song, or movie is just a click (and charge) away.

Ch. 6: Rethinking ownership in the digital age | Siân Lindley - TEDxEastEnd - Air Date 2-20-15

When George Orwell wrote 1984, there was nothing simpler than the idea of owning a paperback book. The more the digital world he foreshadowed becomes real, the more complex the idea of ownership becomes. Do you own your digital books? Your photographs?

MEMBERS-ONLY BONUS CLIP(S)

Ch. 7: The AI that creates any picture you want, explained - Vox - Air Date 6-1-22

How programmers turned the internet into a paintbrush. DALL-E 2, Midjourney, Imagen, explained.

FINAL COMMENTS

Ch. 8: Final comments on how the world was lost and the Dream Machine

MUSIC (Blue Dot Sessions):

• Opening Theme: Loving Acoustic Instrumental by John Douglas Orr 
• Voicemail Music: Low Key Lost Feeling Electro by Alex Stinnent
• Activism Music: This Fickle World by Theo Bard (https://theobard.bandcamp.com/track/this-fickle-world)
• Closing Music: Upbeat Laid Back Indie Rock by Alex Stinnent

 

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Follow at Twitter.com/BestOfTheLeft

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at [email protected]