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A few months ago on Your Undivided Attention, we released a Spotlight episode on TikTok's national security risks. Since then, we've learned more about the dangers of the China-owned company: We've seen evidence of TikTok spying on US journalists, and proof of hidden state media accounts to influence the US elections. We’ve seen Congress ban TikTok on most government issued devices, and more than half of US states have done the same, along with dozens of US universities who are banning TikTok access from university wifi networks. More people in Western governments and media are saying that they used to believe that TikTok was an overblown threat. As we've seen more evidence of  national security risks play out, there’s even talk of banning TikTok itself in certain countries. But is that the best solution? If we opt for a ban, how do we, as open societies, fight accusations of authoritarianism?  On this episode of Your Undivided Attention, we're going to do a deep dive into these questions with Marc Faddoul. He's the co-director of Tracking Exposed, a nonprofit investigating the influence of social media algorithms in our lives. His work has shown how TikTok tweaks its algorithm to maximize partisan engagement in specific national elections, and how it bans international news in countries like Russia that are fighting propaganda battles inside their own borders. In other words, we don't all get the same TikTok because there are different geopolitical interests that might guide which TikTok you see. That is a kind of soft power that TikTok operates on a global scale, and it doesn’t get talked about often enough.We hope this episode leaves you with a lot to think about in terms of what the risks of TikTok are, how it's operating geopolitically, and what we can do about it.RECOMMENDED MEDIATracking Exposed Special Report: TikTok Content Restriction in RussiaHow has the Russian invasion of Ukraine affected the content that TikTok users see in Russia? [Part 1 of Tracking Exposed series]Tracking Exposed Special Report: Content Restrictions on TikTok in Russia Following the Ukrainian WarHow are TikTok’s policy decisions affecting pro-war and anti-war content in Russia? [Part 2 of Tracking Exposed series] Tracking Exposed Special Report: French Elections 2022The visibility of French candidates on TikTok and YouTube search engines The Democratic Surround by Fred TurnerA dazzling cultural history that demonstrates how American intellectuals, artists, and designers from the 1930s-1960s imagined new kinds of collective events that were intended to promote a powerful experience of American democracy in action RECLOMMENDED YUA EPISODES When Media Was for You and Me with Fred Turner Addressing the TikTok Threat A Fresh Take on Tech in China with Rui Ma and Duncan ClarkYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

It may seem like the rise of artificial intelligence, and increasingly powerful large language models you may have heard of, is moving really fast… and it IS.  But what’s coming next is when we enter synthetic relationships with AI that could come to feel just as real and important as our human relationships... And perhaps even more so. In this episode of Your Undivided Attention, Tristan and Aza reach beyond the moment to talk about this powerful new AI, and the new paradigm of humanity and computation we’re about to enter.  This is a structural revolution that affects way more than text, art, or even Google search. There are huge benefits to humanity, and we’ll discuss some of those. But we also see that as companies race to develop the best synthetic relationships, we are setting ourselves up for a new generation of harms made exponentially worse by AI’s power to predict, mimic and persuade. It’s obvious we need ways to steward these tools ethically. So Tristan and Aza also share their ideas for creating a framework for AIs that will help humans become MORE humane, not less. RECOMMENDED MEDIA Cybernetics: or, Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine by Norbert Wiener A classic and influential work that laid the theoretical foundations for information theory New Chatbots Could Change the World. Can You Trust Them? The New York Times addresses misinformation and how Siri, Google Search, online marketing and your child’s homework will never be the same Out of One, Many: Using Language Models to Simulate Human Samples by Lisa P. Argyle, Ethan C. Busby, Nancy Fulda, Joshua Gubler, Christopher Rytting, David Wingate This paper proposes and explores the possibility that language models can be studied as effective proxies for specific human sub-populations in social science research Earth Species Project Earth Species Project, co-founded by Aza Raskin, is a non-profit dedicated to using artificial intelligence to decode non-human communication Her (2013) A science-fiction romantic drama film written, directed, and co-produced by Spike Jonze What A Chatty Monkey May Tell Us About Learning To Talk NPR explores the fascinating world of gelada monkeys and the way they communicate RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES How Political Language is Engineered with Drew Westen & Frank Luntz What is Humane Technology? Down the Rabbit Hole by Design with Guillaume Chaslot 

It’s easy to tell ourselves we’re living in the world we want – one where Darwinian evolution drives competing technology platforms and capitalism pushes nations to maximize GDP regardless of externalities like carbon emissions. It can feel like evolution and competition are all there is. If that’s a complete description of what’s driving the world and our collective destiny, that can feel pretty hopeless. But what if that’s not the whole story of evolution?  This is where evolutionary theorist, author, and professor David Sloan Wilson comes in. He has documented where an enlightened game, one of cooperation, rather than competition, is possible. His work shows that humans can and have chosen values like cooperation, altruism and group success – versus individual competition and selfishness – at key moments in our evolution, proving that evolution isn’t just genetic. It’s cultural, and it’s a choice.  In a world where our trajectory isn’t tracking in the direction we want, it's time to slow down and ask: is a different kind of conscious evolution possible?  On Your Undivided Attention, we’re going to update the Darwinian principles of evolution using a critical scientific lens that can help upgrade our ability to cooperate – ranging from the small community-level, all the way to entire technology companies that can cooperate in ways that allow everyone to succeed. RECOMMENDED MEDIAThis View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution by David Sloan Wilson Prosocial: Using Evolutionary Science to Build Productive, Equitable, and Collaborative Groups by David Sloan Wilson Atlas Hugged: The Autobiography of John Galt III by David Sloan Wilson Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action by Elinor Ostrom Hit Refresh by Satya Nadella WTF? What’s the Future and Why It’s Up to Us by Tim O’Reilly Hard Drive: Bill Gates and the Making of the Microsoft Empire by James Wallace & Jim Erickson  RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES An Alternative to Silicon Valley Unicorns with Mara Zepeda & Kate “Sassy” SassoonA Problem Well-Stated is Half-Solved with Daniel Schmachtenberger Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

Welcome to our first-ever Ask Us Anything episode. Recently we put out a call for questions… and, wow, did you come through! We got more than 100 responses from listeners to this podcast from all over the world. It was really fun going through them all, and really difficult to choose which ones to answer here. But we heard you, and we’ll carry your amazing suggestions and ideas forward with us in 2023.When we created Your Undivided Attention, the goal was to explore the incredible power technology has over our lives, and how we can use it to catalyze a humane future. Three years and a global pandemic later, we’re more committed than ever to helping meet the moment with crucial conversations about humane technology - even as the tech landscape constantly evolves and world events bring more urgency to the need for technology that unites us, invests in democratic values, and enhances our well-being.We’ve learned from our guests alongside all of you. Sixty-one episodes later, the podcast has over 16 million unique downloads! That’s a lot of people who care about the promise of humane technology and are working to construct a more humane version of technology in their lives, their family’s lives, and within their communities and society at large. We’re a movement! Thank you to everyone who submitted questions and comments for us. We loved doing this, and we’re looking forward to doing it again! Correction: When discussing DeepMind’s recent paper, Aza said the premise was four people entering their views and opinions, with AI finding the commonality between all of those viewpoints. It was actually three people entering their views and opinions.RECOMMENDED MEDIA CHT’s Recommended Reading List: Foundations of Humane Technology Our free, self-paced online course for professionals shaping tomorrow’s technology The Age of Surveillance Capitalism by Shoshana Zuboff  Foundational reading on the attention economyAlgorithms of Oppression by Safiya Umoja Noble  Seminal work on how algorithms in search engines replicate and reinforce bias online and offline Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman  Written in 1985, Postman’s work shockingly predicts our current media environment and its effects Attention Merchants by Tim Wu A history of how advertisers capture our attention Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth  A compass for how to upgrade our economic models to be more regenerative and distributiveThinking in Systems by Donella Meadows This excellent primer shows us how to develop systems thinking skills What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets by Michael Sandel Sandel explores how we can prevent market values from reaching into spheres of life where they don’t belong Essay: Disbelieving Atrocities by Arthur Koestler Originally published January 9, 1944 in The New York TimesHumane Technology reading list Comprehensive for those who want to geek outORGANIZATIONS TO EXPLORE Integrity Institute Integrity Institute advances the theory and practice of protecting the social internet, powered by their community of integrity professionalsAll Tech Is Human job board All Tech Is Human curates roles focused on reducing the harms of technology, diversifying the tech pipeline, and ensuring that technology is aligned with the public interest Denizen Denizen brings together leaders across disciplines to accelerate systemic change New_Public New_Public is place for thinkers, builders, designers and technologists to meet and share inspiration Psychology of Technology Institute PTI is non-profit network of behavioral scientists, technology designers, and decision-makers that protects and improves psychological health for society by advancing our understanding and effective use of transformative technologies RadicalxChange RxC is a social movement for next-generation political economiesThe School for Social Design The School for Social Design offers three courses on articulating what’s meaningful for different people and how to design for it at smaller and larger scales TechCongress TechCongress is a technology policy fellowship on Capitol HillRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES An Alternative to Silicon Valley Unicorns https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/54-an-alternative-to-silicon-valley-unicorns A Problem Well-Stated is Half-Solved https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/a-problem-well-stated-is-half-solvedDigital Democracy is Within Reach https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/23-digital-democracy-is-within-reachYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

When you look at the world, it can feel like we're in a precarious moment. If you’ve listened to past episodes, you know we call this the meta-crisis — an era of overlapping and interconnected crises like climate change, polarization, and the rise of decentralized technologies like synthetic biology. It can feel like we’re on a path to destroy ourselves. That's why we’re talking to Rick Doblin, the founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS. They’re a nonprofit focused on educating and researching the benefits of using psychedelic therapy to address PTSD and promote humane ways of relating worldwide. Doblin’s vision is for nothing less than a transformation of society through psychedelic-assisted therapy – not for the drugs themselves, but for their ability to help us react to one another with compassion, appreciate differences, and accept criticism.Given the perma-crisis we face, it’s provocative to think about a tool that, when prescribed and used safely, could help us overcome rivalrous dynamics out in the world and on social media. If we rescue our hijacked brains, we can heal from the constant trauma inflation we get online, and shrink the perception gap that splits us into tribes. Both MAPS and Center for Humane Technology want to understand what helps minds heal and be free. We invite you to keep an open mind about a different kind of humane technology as you listen to this episode. Correction:  Doblin attributes a quote to Stan Grof about psychedelics helping your ego be “transparent to the transcendent.” In his book Pathways to Bliss, Joseph Campbell wrote, "When a deity serves as a model for you, your life becomes transparent to the transcendent as long as you realize the inspiring power of that deity. This means living not in the name of worldly success and achievement, but rather in the name of the transcendent, letting the energy manifest through you.” Grof was likely paraphrasing Campbell’s work and applying it to psychedelics.  Additional credits: The episode contains an original musical composition by Jeff Sudakin. Used with permission.   RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) The non-profit founded by Rick Doblin in 1986 focused on developing medical, legal, and cultural contexts for people to benefit from the careful uses of psychedelics and marijuana. MAPS has some open clinical trials; see details on their website.  Rick Doblin’s TED talk In this fascinating dive into the science of psychedelics, Doblin explains how drugs like LSD, psilocybin and MDMA affect your brain - and shows how, when paired with psychotherapy, they could change the way we treat PTSD, depression, substance abuse and more. How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan Pollan writes of his own consciousness-expanding experiments with psychedelic drugs, and makes the case for why shaking up the brain's old habits could be therapeutic for people facing addiction, depression, or death. How to Change Your Mind on Netflix The docuseries version of Pollan’s book Breath by James Nestor This popular science book provides a historical, scientific and personal account of breathing, with special focus on the differences between mouth breathing and nasal breathing. Insight timer A free app for sleep, anxiety, and stress   RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES  You Will Never Breathe the Same Again with James Nestor https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/38-you-will-never-breathe-the-same-again Two Million Years in Two Hours: A Conversation with Yuval Noah Harari  https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/28-two-million-years-in-two-hours-a-conversation-with-yuval-noah-harari Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_ 

When it comes to social media risk, there is reason to hope for consensus. Center for Humane Technology co-founder Tristan Harris recently helped launch a new initiative called the Council for Responsible Social Media (CRSM) in Washington, D.C. It’s a coalition between religious leaders, public health experts, national security leaders, and former political representatives from both sides - people who just care about making our democracy work. During this event, Tristan sat down with Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen, a friend of Center for Humane Technology, to discuss the harm caused to our mental health and global democracy when platforms lack accountability and transparency. The CRSM is bipartisan, and its kickoff serves to boost the solutions Frances and Tristan identify going into 2023. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Council for Responsible Social Media (CRSM) A project of Issue One, CRSM is a cross-partisan group of leaders addressing the negative mental, civic, and public health impacts of social media in America.Twitter Whistleblower Testifies on Security Issues Peiter “Mudge” Zatko, a former Twitter security executive, testified on privacy and security issues relating to the social media company before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Beyond the Screen Beyond the Screen is a coalition of technologists, designers, and thinkers fighting against online harms, led by the Facebook whistle-blower Frances Haugen. #OneClickSafer Campaign Our campaign to pressure Facebook to make one immediate change — join us! RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen A Facebook Whistleblower: Sophie Zhang https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/episode-37-a-facebook-whistleblower Mr. Harris Zooms to Washington  https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/episode-35-mr-harris-zooms-to-washingtonWith Great Power Comes… No Responsibility? https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/3-with-great-power-comes-no-responsibilityYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

The weekly American news show 60 Minutes invited Center for Humane Technology co-founder Tristan Harris back recently to discuss political polarization and the anger and incivility that gets elevated on social media as a matter of corporate profit. We're releasing a special episode of Your Undivided Attention this week to dig further into some of the important nuances of the complexity of this problem. CHT’s work was actually introduced to the world by Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes back in 2017, and we’re honored to have been invited back. In this new interview, we cover the business model of competing for engagement at all costs - the real root of the problem that we’re thrilled to be able to discuss on a far-reaching platform. We also busted the myth that if you’re not on social media, you don’t need to be concerned. Even if you're not on social media, you likely live in a country that will vote based on other people’s collective choices and behaviors. We know that the media we engage with shapes the people who consume it.  CORRECTION:  Tristan notes that Facebook's Head of Global Policy, Monika Bickert, says in the  interview that social media can't be the root of America's anger because it's people over the age of 60 who are most polarized. She actually said that people over the age of 65 are most polarized. RECOMMENDED MEDIA60 Minutes: “Social Media and Political Polarization in America” https://humanetech.com/60minutes Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/297276/amusing-ourselves-to-death-by-neil-postman/ Neil Postman’s groundbreaking book about the damaging effects of television on our politics and public discourse has been hailed as a twenty-first-century book published in the twentieth century. 60 Minutes: “Brain Hacking” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awAMTQZmvPERECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES Elon, Twitter, and the Gladiator Arena https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/elon-twitter-and-the-gladiator-arena Addressing the TikTok Threat https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/bonus-addressing-the-tiktok-threat What is Civil War In The Digital Age? With Barbara F Walter https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/50-what-is-civil-war-in-the-digital-age

Since it’s looking more and more like Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, will probably soon have ownership of Twitter, we wanted to do a special episode about what this could mean for Twitter users and our global digital democracy as a whole.Twitter is a very complicated place. It is routinely blocked by governments who fear its power to organize citizen protests around the world. It’s also where outrage, fear and violence get amplified by design, warping users’ views of each other and our common, connected humanity.We’re at a fork in the road, and we know enough about humane design principles to do this better. So we thought we would do a little thought experiment: What if we applied everything we know about humane technology to Twitter, starting tomorrow? What would happen?This is the second part in a two-part conversation about Twitter that we’ve had on Your Undivided Attention about Elon Musk’s bid for Twitter and what it could mean in the context of the need to go in a more humane direction.RECOMMENDED MEDIA  On Liberty by John Stuart Mill Published in 1859, this philosophical essay applies Mill's ethical system of utilitarianism to society and state Elon Musk Only Has “Yes” Men by Jonathan L. Fischer Reporting from Slate on the subject Foundations of Humane Technology The Center for Humane Technology's free online course for professionals shaping tomorrow's technology RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Bigger Picture on Elon and Twitter https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/bigger-picture-elon-twitter Transcending the Internet Hate Game with Dylan Marron https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/52-transcending-the-internet-hate-game Fighting With Mirages of Each Other with Adam Mastroianni https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/56-fighting-with-mirages-of-each-otherYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

We often talk about the need to protect American democracy. But perhaps those of us in the United States don't currently live in a democracy. As research shows, there's pretty much no correlation between the percentage of the population that supports a policy and its likelihood of being enacted. The strongest determinant of whether a policy gets enacted is how much money is behind it. So, how might we not just protect, but better yet revive our democracy? How might we revive  the relationship between the will of the people and the actions of our government? This week on Your Undivided Attention, we're doing something special. As we near the election, and representation is on our minds, we're airing a talk by Harvard Law professor and Creative Commons co-founder Larry Lessig. It's a 2019 talk he gave at the Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, DC about his book, They Don't Represent Us. The book title has two meanings: first, they — as in our elected representatives — don't represent us. And second, we — as in the people — don't represent ourselves. And this is where social media comes in: we don't represent ourselves because the more we use social media, the more we see extreme versions of the other side, and the more extreme, outraged, and polarized we ourselves become. Last note: Lessig's talk is highly visual. We edited it lightly for clarity, and jump in periodically to narrate things you can’t see. But if you prefer to watch his talk, you can find the link below in Recommended Media.  RECOMMENDED MEDIA Video: They Don't Represent Us The 2019 talk Larry Lessig gave at Politics and Prose in Washington, DC about his book of the same name Book: They Don't Represent Us Larry Lessig’s 2019 book that elaborates the ways in which democratic representation is in peril, and proposes a number of solutions to revive our democracy -- from ranked-choice voting to non-partisan open primaries Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens  Princeton's Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page study measuring the correlation between the preferences of different groups and the decisions of our government  RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESDigital Democracy is Within Reach with Audrey Tang https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/23-digital-democracy-is-within-reach How Political Language Is Engineered with Drew Westen and Frank Luntz https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/53-how-political-language-is-engineered Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

The next frontier of the internet is the metaverse. That's why Mark Zuckerberg changed the name of his company from Facebook to Meta, and just sold $10 billion in corporate bonds to raise money for metaverse-related projects. How might we learn from our experience with social media, and anticipate the harms of the metaverse before they arise? What would it look like to design a humane metaverse — that respects our attention, improves our well-being, and strengthens our democracy? This week on Your Undivided Attention, we talk with two pioneers who are thinking critically about the development of the metaverse. Professor Jeremy Bailenson is the Founding director of Stanford’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab, where he studies how virtual experiences lead to changes in perceptions of self and others. Dr. Courtney Cogburn is an Associate Professor at Columbia's School of Social Work, where she examines associations between racism and stress-related disease. Jeremy and Courtney collaborated on 1000 Cut Journey, a virtual reality experience about systemic racism.CORRECTIONS:  In the episode, Courtney says that the average US adult consumes 9 hours of media per day, but the actual number in 2022 is closer to 13 hours. Finally, Aza mentions the "pockets of 4.6 billion people" — implying that there are 4.6 billion smartphone users. The global number of social media users is 4.7 billion, and the number of smartphone users is actually 6.6 billion. RECOMMENDED MEDIA: Experience on Demand: What Virtual Reality Is, How It Works, and What It Can Do https://www.amazon.com/Experience-Demand-Virtual-Reality-Works/dp/0393253694Jeremy Bailenson's 2018 book exploring how virtual reality can be harnessed to improve our everyday lives Experiencing Racism in VR https://www.ted.com/talks/courtney_cogburn_experiencing_racism_in_vr_courtney_d_cogburn_phd_tedxrvaCourtney Cogburn's 2017 TEDx talk about how using virtual reality to help people experience the complexities of racism Do Artifacts Have Politics? https://faculty.cc.gatech.edu/~beki/cs4001/Winner.pdf   Technology philosopher Langdon Winner’s seminal 1980 article, in which he writes, "by far the greatest latitude of choice exists the very first time a particular instrument, system, or technique is introduced."RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES:  Do You Want To Become A Vampire? with LA Paul https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/39-do-you-want-to-become-a-vampire Pardon the Interruptions with Gloria Mark https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/7-pardon-the-interruptions Bonus - What Is Humane Technology? https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/bonus-what-is-humane-technologyYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

Have you ever lost a friend to misperception? Have you lost a friend or a family member to the idea that your views got so different, that it was time to end the relationship — perhaps by unfriending each other on Facebook? As it turns out, we often think our ideological differences are far greater than they actually are. Which means: we’re losing relationships and getting mired in polarization based on warped visions of each other.  This week on Your Undivided Attention, we're talking with Adam Mastroianni, a postdoctoral research scholar at Columbia Business School who studies how we perceive and misperceive our social worlds. Together with Adam, we're going to explore how accurate — and inaccurate — our views of each other are. As you listen to our conversation, keep in mind that relationship you might have lost to misperception, and that you might be able to revive as a result of what you hear. CORRECTIONS: In the episode, Adam says in 1978, 85% of people said they'd vote for a Black president, but the actual percentage is 80.4%. Tristan says that Republicans estimate that more than a third of Democrats are LGBTQ, but the actual percentage is 32%. Finally, Tristan refers to Anil Seth's notion of cognitive impenetrability, but that term was actually coined by the Canadian cognitive scientist and philosopher Zenon W. Pylyshyn.RECOMMENDED MEDIA Widespread Misperceptions of Long-term Attitude Changehttps://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2107260119   Adam Mastroianni's research paper showing how stereotypes of the past lead people to misperceive attitude change, and how these misperceptions can lend legitimacy to policies that people may not actually prefer Experimental Historyhttps://experimentalhistory.substack.com/  Adam's blog, where he shares original data and thinks through ideas Americans experience a false social reality by underestimating popular climate policy support by nearly halfhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-32412-yAcademic study showing that Americans are living in what researchers called a “false social reality” with respect to misperceptions about climate viewsRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES  Mind the (Perception) Gap with Dan Vallone https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/33-mind-the-perception-gap The Courage to Connect. Guests: Ciaran O’Connor and John Wood, Jr. https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/30-the-courage-to-connect Transcending the Internet Hate Game with Dylan Marron https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/52-transcending-the-internet-hate-game  

Imagine it's the Cold War. Imagine that the Soviet Union puts itself in a position to influence the television programming of the entire Western world — more than a billion viewers.  While this might sound like science fiction, it’s representative of the world we're living in, with TikTok being influenced by the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok, the flagship app of the Chinese company Bytedance, recently surpassed Google and Facebook as the most popular site on the internet in 2021, and is expected to reach more than 1.8 billion users by the end of 2022. The Chinese government doesn't control TikTok, but has influence over it. What are the implications of this influence, given that China is the main geopolitical rival of the United States? This week on Your Undivided Attention, we bring you a bonus episode about TikTok. Co-hosts Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin explore the nature of the TikTok threat, and how we might address it.RECOMMENDED MEDIA Pew Research Center's "Teens, Social Media and Technology 2022" https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/ Pew's recent study on how TikTok has established itself as one of the top online platforms for U.S. teens Axios' "Washington turns up the heat on TikTok" https://www.axios.com/2022/07/07/congress-tiktok-china-privacy-data?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email Article on recent Congressional responses to the threat of TikTokFelix Krause on TikTok's keystroke tracking https://twitter.com/KrauseFx/status/1560372509639311366 A revelation that TikTok has code to observe keypad input and all tapsRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Fresh Take on Tech in China with Rui Ma and Duncan Clark https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/44-a-fresh-take-on-tech-in-china A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen From Russia with Likes (Part 1). Guest: Renée DiResta https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/5-from-russia-with-likes-part-1 From Russia with Likes (Part 2). Guest: Renée DiResta https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/6-from-russia-with-likes-part-2  Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

At Center for Humane Technology, we often talk about multipolar traps — which arise when individuals have an incentive to act in ways that are beneficial to them in the short term, but detrimental to the group in the long term. Think of social media companies that compete for our attention, so that when TikTok introduces an even-more addictive feature, Facebook and Twitter have to mimic it in order to keep up, sending us all on a race to the bottom of our brainstems. Intervening at the level of multipolar traps has extraordinary leverage. One such intervention is the Long Term Stock Exchange — a U.S. national securities exchange serving companies and investors who share a long-term vision. Instead of asking public companies to pollute less or be less addictive while holding them accountable to short-term shareholder value, the Long-Term Stock Exchange creates a new playing field, which incentivizes the creation of long-term stakeholder value. This week on Your Undivided Attention, we’re airing an episode of a podcast called ZigZag — a fellow member of the TED Audio Collective. In an exploration of how technology companies might transcend multipolar traps, we're sharing with you ZigZag’s conversation with Long Term Stock Exchange founder Eric Ries. CORRECTION: In the episode, we say that TikTok has outcompeted Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. In fact, TikTok has outcompeted Facebook, but not yet YouTube or Instagram — TikTok has 1 billion monthly users, while YouTube has 2.6 billion and Instagram has 2 billion. However, we can say that TikTok is on a path toward outcompeting YouTube and Instagram. RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES An Alternative to Silicon Valley Unicorns with Mara Zepeda & Kate “Sassy” Sassoon: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/54-an-alternative-to-silicon-valley-unicorns A Problem Well-Stated Is Half-Solved with Daniel Schmachtenberger: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/a-problem-well-stated-is-half-solved Here’s Our Plan And We Don’t Know with Tristan Harris, Aza Raskin, and Stephanie Lepp: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/46-heres-our-plan-and-we-dont-know

When you hear the word cyber-attack, what comes to mind? Someone hacking into your email, or stealing your Facebook password? As it turns out, our most critical infrastructure can be hacked. Our banks, water treatment facilities, and nuclear power plants can be deactivated and even controlled simply by finding bugs in the software used to operate them. Suddenly, cyber-attack takes on a different meaning. This week on Your Undivided Attention, we're talking with cyber-security expert Nicole Perlroth. Nicole spent a decade as the lead cyber-security reporter at The New York Times, and is now a member of the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity Advisory Committee. She recently published “This Is How They Tell Me The World Ends” — an in-depth exploration of the global cyber arms race.CORRECTIONS: In the episode, Nicole says that "the United States could have only afforded 2 to 3 more days of Colonial Pipeline being down before it ground the country — our economy — to a halt." The correct number is actually 3 to 5 days. She also refers to a 2015 study researching why some countries have significantly fewer successful cyber-attacks relative to cyber-attack attempts. That study was actually published in 2016.RECOMMENDED MEDIA  This Is How They Tell Me The World Ends Nicole Perlroth’s 2021 book investigating the global cyber-weapons arms race Reporter Page at the New York Times Nicole’s articles while the lead cyber-security reporter at the New York Times The Global Cyber-Vulnerability Report (in brief) Brief of a 2015 study by the Center for Digital International Government, Virginia Tech, and the University of Maryland that researched why some countries have significantly fewer successful cyber-attacks relative to cyber-attack attempts RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES  The Dark Side Of Decentralization with Audrey Kurth Cronin: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/49-the-dark-side-of-decentralization Is World War III Already Here? Guest: Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/45-is-world-war-iii-already-here A Problem Well-Stated Is Half-Solved with Daniel Schmachtenberger:  https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/a-problem-well-stated-is-half-solvedYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

Why isn't Twitter doing more to get bots off their platform? Why isn’t Uber taking better care of its drivers?  What if...they can't? Venture-capital backed companies like Twitter and Uber are held accountable to maximizing returns to investors. If and when they become public companies, they become accountable to maximizing returns to shareholders. They’ve promised Wall Street outsized returns — which means Twitter can't lose bots if it would significantly lower their user count and in turn lower advertising revenue, and Uber can’t treat their drivers like employees if it competes with profits. But what's the alternative? What might it look like to design an ownership and governance model that incentivizes a technology company to serve all of its stakeholders over the long term – and primarily, the stakeholders who create value? This week on Your Undivided Attention, we're talking with two experts on creating the conditions for humane business, and in turn, for humane technology: Mara Zepeda and Kate “Sassy” Sassoon of Zebras Unite Co-Op. Zebras Unite is a member-owned co-operative that’s creating the capital, culture, and community to power a more just and inclusive economy. The Zebras Unite Coop serves a community of over 6,000 members, in about 30 chapters, over 6 continents. Mara is their Managing Director, and Kate is their Director of Cooperative Membership. Two corrections: The episode says that the failure rate of startups is 99%. The actual rate is closer to 90%. The episode says that in 2017, Twitter reported 350 million users on its platform. The actual number reported was 319 million users. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Zebras Fix What Unicorns Break A seminal 2017 article by Zebras Unite co-founders, which kicked off the movement and distinguished between zebras and unicorns — per the table below. Meetup to the People  Zebras Unite’s 2019 thought experiment of exiting Meetup to community Zebras Unite Crowdcast Channel Where you can find upcoming online events, as well as recordings of previous events.RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Renegade Solution to Extractive Economics with Kate Raworth: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/29-a-renegade-solution-to-extractive-economics Bonus — A Bigger Picture on Elon & Twitter: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/bigger-picture-elon-twitter   Here’s Our Plan And We Don’t Know with Tristan Harris, Aza Raskin, and Stephanie Lepp: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/46-heres-our-plan-and-we-dont-knowYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

This week on Your Undivided Attention, we’re doing something different: we’re airing an episode of another podcast that’s also part of the TED Audio Collective. Backing up for a moment: we recently aired an episode with Dylan Marron — creator and host of the podcast, Conversations With People Who Hate Me. On his show, Dylan calls up the people behind negative comments on the internet, and asks them: why did you write that? In our conversation with Dylan, we played a clip from episode 2 of Conversations With People Who Hate Me. In that episode, Dylan talks with a high school student named Josh, who’d sent him homophobic messages online. This week, we're airing that full episode — the full conversation between Dylan Marron and Josh. If you didn’t hear our episode with Dylan, do give it a listen. Then, enjoy this second episode of Conversations With People Who Hate Me. RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES Transcending the Internet Hate Game with Dylan Marron: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/52-transcending-the-internet-hate-game A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen The Cure for Hate. Guest: Tony McAleer: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/11-the-cure-for-hateYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

Democracy depends on our ability to choose our political views. But the language we use to talk about political issues is deliberately designed to be divisive, and can produce up to a 15-point difference in what we think about those issues. As a result, are we choosing our views, or is our language choosing them for us? This week,Your Undivided Attention welcomes two Jedi Masters of political communication. Drew Westen is a political psychologist and messaging consultant based at Emory university, who has advised the Democratic Party. Frank Luntz is a political and communications consultant, pollster, and pundit, who has advised the Republican Party. In the past, our guests have used their messaging expertise in ways that increased partisanship. For example, Luntz advocated for the use of the term “death tax” instead of “estate tax,” and “climate change” instead of “global warming.” Still, Luntz and Westen are uniquely positioned to help us decode the divisive power of language — and explore how we might design language that unifies. CORRECTIONS: in the episode, Tristan refers to a panel Drew Westen and Frank Luntz were on at the New York Public Library. He says the panel was “about 10 years ago,” but it was actually 15 years ago in 2007. Also, Westen refers to a news anchor who moderated a debate between George H. W. Bush and Michael Dukakis in 1988. Drew mistakenly names the anchor as Bernard Kalb, when it was actually Bernard Shaw.RECOMMENDED MEDIAThe Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation Drew Westen's 2008 book about role of emotion in determining the political life of the nation, which influenced campaigns and elections around the world Words That Work: It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear Frank Luntz's 2008 book, which offers a behind-the-scenes look at how the tactical use of words and phrases affects what we buy, who we vote for, and even what we believe in New York Public Library's Panel on Political Language  A 2007 panel between multiple 'Jedi Masters' of political communication along the political spectrum, including Frank Luntz, Drew Westen, and George Lakoff  RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODESThe Invisible Influence of Language with Lera Boroditsky: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/48-the-invisible-influence-of-language How To Free Our Minds with Cult Deprogramming Expert Dr. Steven Hassan: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/51-how-to-free-our-minds Mind the (Perception) Gap with Dan Vallone: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/33-mind-the-perception-gapYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

The game that social media sets us up to play is a game that rewards outrage. It's a game that we win by being better than other players at dunking on each other, straw-manning each other, and assuming the worst in each other. The game itself must be transformed. And, we can also decide to step out of the game, and do something different.  On this week’s episode of Your Undivided Attention, we welcome Dylan Marron — who has been called by Jason Sudeikis "a modern Mr. Rogers for the digital age." Dylan is the creator and host of the podcast Conversations With People Who Hate Me.  On the show, he calls up the people behind negative comments on the internet, and asks them a simple question: why did you write that? He just published a book by the same name, where he elaborates 12 lessons learned from talking with internet strangers. Together with Dylan, we explore how transforming the game and transforming ourselves can go hand-in-hand.RECOMMENDED MEDIA Conversations With People Who Hate Me (podcast) Dylan Marron’s podcast where he calls up the people behind negative comments on the internet, and talks to them. In this episode, we heard a clip of Episode 2: Hurt People Hurt People. Conversations With People Who Hate Me (book) Dylan’s book where he elaborates 12 lessons learned from talking with internet strangers. Won’t You Be My Neighbor Feature documentary chronicling the work and legacy of Fred Rogers.RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugen The Cure for Hate. Guest: Tony McAleer: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/11-the-cure-for-hate The Fake News of Your Own Mind with Jack Kornfield and Trudy Goodman:  https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/19-the-fake-news-of-your-own-mindYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

How would you know if you were in a cult?  If not a cult, then at least under undue influence? The truth is: we're all under some form of undue influence. The question is: to what degree and to what extent we’re aware of this influence — which is exacerbated by social media. In an era of likes, followers, and echo chambers, how can we become aware of undue influence and gain sovereignty over our minds? Our guest this week is Dr. Steven Hassan, an expert on undue influence, brainwashing, and unethical hypnosis. He’s the founder of the Freedom of Mind Resource Center — a coaching, consulting, and training organization dedicated to helping people freely consider how they want to live their lives. Dr. Hassan was himself a member of a cult: the Unification Church (also known as the Moonies), which was developed in Korea in the 1950's. Since leaving the Moonies, Dr. Hassan has helped thousands of individuals and families recover from undue influence.RECOMMENDED MEDIA Freedom of Mind website: The website for Dr. Hassan’s Freedom of Mind Resource Center, which includes resources such as his Influence Continuum, BITE model of authoritarian control, and Strategic Interactive Approach for alleviating people of undue influence The Influence Continuum with Dr. Steven Hassan: Dr. Hassan’s podcast exploring how mind-control works, and how to protect yourself from its grips  Reckonings: A podcast that told the stories of people who’ve transcended extremism, expanded their worldviews, and made other kinds of transformative change. Start with episode 17 featuring a former paid climate skeptic, or episode 18 featuring the former protégé of Fox News chairman Roger AilesRECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES Can Your Reality Turn on a Word? Guest: Anthony Jacquin: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/34-can-your-reality-turn-on-a-word The World According to Q. Guest: Travis View: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/21-the-world-according-to-qThe Cure for Hate. Guest: Tony McAleer: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/11-the-cure-for-hateYour Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_

If Elon Musk owns Twitter, what are the risks and what are the opportunities? In order for Twitter to support democracy — and Musk’s goal of becoming a multi-planetary civilization — we need a radical redesign that goes beyond free speech.  Note: this conversation was recorded on April 21, 2022. That was 3 days prior to the official purchase announcement, which revealed that Elon Musk will buy Twitter for $44 billion.  Clarification: In the episode, we talk about the creation of The Daily Show, featuring Jon Stewart. To be clear, The Daily Show was created by writer and producer Madeleine Smithberg and comedian and media personality Lizz Winstead — for comedian and host Craig Kilborn. Jon Stewart took over in 1999, which is when he had the conversation with executives that we reference in the episode, where he didn't want to see the viewership numbers. RECOMMENDED MEDIA  Examining algorithmic amplification of political content on Twitter Polarization of Twitter (Knight Foundation) Pew Research on the political extremes drowning out centrist voices on Twitter Chronological feed vs algorithm (Computational Journalism Lab)RECOMMENDED YUA EPISODES A Conversation with Facebook Whistleblower Frances Haugen: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/42-a-conversation-with-facebook-whistleblower-frances-haugenHere’s Our Plan And We Don’t Know: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/46-heres-our-plan-and-we-dont-knowA Problem Well-Stated Is Half-Solved: https://www.humanetech.com/podcast/a-problem-well-stated-is-half-solved Your Undivided Attention is produced by the Center for Humane Technology. Follow us on Twitter: @HumaneTech_