Meta’s most expensive acquisition ever and one of the most used communication apps in the world: WhatsApp. With over 2 billion users, WhatsApp is embedded in the social, economic, and political infrastructure of countries across the globe. For better and worse. The story of WhatsApp’s incredible power, as told through its largest market: India.
NOTE: There are descriptions of graphic acts of violence in this episode. If you want to skip these descriptions, the section begins at 20:45 and ends at 22:05.

Hosted by Shirin Ghaffary (@shiringhaffary) and Alex Heath (@alexeheath)

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It's A WhatsApp World

Big tech is transforming every aspect of our world. But how? And at what cost? This season of Land of the Giants – The Twitter Fantasy – will tell the story of Twitter (X) at a crucial moment for the platform, exactly one year after Elon Musk took over. Hosted by Vox senior correspondent Peter Kafka, the four-episode season will survey the company's outsize influence on politics and culture. How did Twitter become the Internet’s town square, for better and for worse? And where is it heading, now that Elon’s in charge? 

From Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network. New episodes drop every Wednesday.

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In October 2022, Elon Musk made the world’s most expensive impulse purchase. His reasons for buying Twitter were murky at best, but in the story he tells now, he’s saving civilization. In the final episode of this season, we look at Twitter today, inside Elon’s fantasy. What happens when the world’s richest man buys the global town square - and announces that we are doing it all wrong?

Hosted by Peter Kafka (@pkafka)

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Elon Saves Humanity

Twitter employees had always imagined the platform would be used for social good. Their idea was that free expression on the internet would lead to good things. But after the 2016 U.S. election, that notion would be put under stress. And Twitter would have to grapple with the question: what happens when its powerful superuser - who also happens to be the most powerful person in the world - creates havoc on the platform?

Hosted by Peter Kafka (@pkafka)

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Havoc On the Platform, and Off

Twitter was created by its users, who invented features like the retweet and hashtag. These features helped create vibrant communities like Black Twitter and Comedy Twitter, but eventually, some groups exploited Twitter’s virality in order to intimidate and harass others online. In this episode: how Twitter became the best and worst place on the internet.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This episode contains descriptions of sexual harassment and of graphic threats of violence. This section begins 9 minutes after the midroll break and lasts for about 5 minutes, or approximately 35:30 through 41:20.

This episode hosted by Peter Kafka (@pkafka) and Lauren Goode (@laurengoode)


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A Million Different Twitters

Twitter began life as an accident. In the beginning, even its founders weren’t sure what it was: the internet’s town square, a real-time information source, or the next Facebook, maybe? Twitter's power has always been misunderstood -- by its leaders, by its users, and lately, by the world's richest person.

Hosted by Peter Kafka (@pkafka)

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What We All Got Wrong About Twitter

A year ago, in what was essentially the world’s most expensive impulse purchase, Elon Musk bought Twitter. That made him Twitter’s most important user. But he’s certainly not the only one to fall for its spell - a spell that promises attention, connection, and power. This season will explore why Twitter’s cultural and political influence far exceeds its size, and how its biggest users shaped it, for better and worse.
Hosted by Vox senior correspondent Peter Kafka. Episodes drop every Wednesday beginning October 25th. 

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It's A WhatsApp World

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