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Escaping Algorithmic Binds: Creators vs. Corporate Platforms (w/ Bridget Todd & Rudy Fraser at SXSW)
The biggest social media platforms in the world have alienated their users and trapped them inside algorithms that only serve corporate interests. But there is good reason to have hope for the future of decentralized social apps, made for and by their communities.
In this live interview recorded at SXSW 2026 in Austin, Texas, Rabble speaks with Rudy Fraser, the creator of Blacksky Algorithms, and Bridget Todd, the host of the podcast There Are No Girls on the Internet and an affiliate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society.
"I want to see more optimistic visions of the future," Rudy says. "I want to see less dystopian visions. I want to see more Afrofuturism ... There's lots of people talk about 'let a thousand flowers bloom.' I think it [decentralization] does open up opportunities for people to be really creative."
Rabble, Rudy, and Bridget spoke about the evolution of the creator economy, how to build a more equitable internet, and why podcasts are the most democratic form of social media.
“If you've ever listened to a podcast at the end, you probably hear the host say something along the lines of, Oh, subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts,” Bridget says. “It really means something kind of radical because that's not just something that people say. It is true … If I say something that Apple doesn't like, Apple can't shut down my podcast because it doesn't work that way, thanks to the RSS feed.”
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
02:40 Rudy Fraser and the Story of Blacksky
04:10 Bridget Todd on Identity and Technology
08:43 The Power of RSS Feeds
11:51 Rethinking Algorithms for Community Discovery
16:10 Explaining Decentralization to Mainstream Users
20:41 Economic Incentives and Monetization Models
24:46 Lessons from the Twitter Migration
27:57 Narrative Control and Cross-Platform Integration
31:34 Scalability and Digital Strikes
34:00 Rebuilding Infrastructure from First Principles
37:55 The Nuance Problem in Large-Scale Moderation
42:37 Beyond the Sharecropping System of Big Tech
46:58 The Right to Replatforming and Social Coding
51:56 Policy and Global Tech Regulation
Learn more about Blacksky: https://blackskyweb.xyz/
Listen to There Are No Girls on the Internet: https://www.tangoti.com/
Watch Rudy’s previous interview: https://youtu.be/UA1DutGDVcs?si=KoGgvv-u5DAyh4UM
Watch Bridget’s previous interview: https://youtu.be/lpXr_JvuVIw?si=zsiolnlf1OBaf1mt
Follow Rabble on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/rabble.nz
Follow the podcast: https://revolution.social/episodes/
This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm, and executive produced by Alice Chan from Flock Marketing.
To learn more about Rabble’s Social Media Bill of Rights, and sign up for our newsletter, visit https://revolution.social/
View all episodes
By Rabble a.k.a. Evan Henshaw-PlathThe biggest social media platforms in the world have alienated their users and trapped them inside algorithms that only serve corporate interests. But there is good reason to have hope for the future of decentralized social apps, made for and by their communities.
In this live interview recorded at SXSW 2026 in Austin, Texas, Rabble speaks with Rudy Fraser, the creator of Blacksky Algorithms, and Bridget Todd, the host of the podcast There Are No Girls on the Internet and an affiliate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society.
"I want to see more optimistic visions of the future," Rudy says. "I want to see less dystopian visions. I want to see more Afrofuturism ... There's lots of people talk about 'let a thousand flowers bloom.' I think it [decentralization] does open up opportunities for people to be really creative."
Rabble, Rudy, and Bridget spoke about the evolution of the creator economy, how to build a more equitable internet, and why podcasts are the most democratic form of social media.
“If you've ever listened to a podcast at the end, you probably hear the host say something along the lines of, Oh, subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts,” Bridget says. “It really means something kind of radical because that's not just something that people say. It is true … If I say something that Apple doesn't like, Apple can't shut down my podcast because it doesn't work that way, thanks to the RSS feed.”
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
02:40 Rudy Fraser and the Story of Blacksky
04:10 Bridget Todd on Identity and Technology
08:43 The Power of RSS Feeds
11:51 Rethinking Algorithms for Community Discovery
16:10 Explaining Decentralization to Mainstream Users
20:41 Economic Incentives and Monetization Models
24:46 Lessons from the Twitter Migration
27:57 Narrative Control and Cross-Platform Integration
31:34 Scalability and Digital Strikes
34:00 Rebuilding Infrastructure from First Principles
37:55 The Nuance Problem in Large-Scale Moderation
42:37 Beyond the Sharecropping System of Big Tech
46:58 The Right to Replatforming and Social Coding
51:56 Policy and Global Tech Regulation
Learn more about Blacksky: https://blackskyweb.xyz/
Listen to There Are No Girls on the Internet: https://www.tangoti.com/
Watch Rudy’s previous interview: https://youtu.be/UA1DutGDVcs?si=KoGgvv-u5DAyh4UM
Watch Bridget’s previous interview: https://youtu.be/lpXr_JvuVIw?si=zsiolnlf1OBaf1mt
Follow Rabble on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/rabble.nz
Follow the podcast: https://revolution.social/episodes/
This episode was produced and edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm, and executive produced by Alice Chan from Flock Marketing.
To learn more about Rabble’s Social Media Bill of Rights, and sign up for our newsletter, visit https://revolution.social/