“They’re killing people.”
With three words, President Biden this month slammed social media over the proliferation of Covid-19 disinformation. They did not sound like a warning – even a final warning – but the words of a man who has had enough and intends to do something about it.
They did another thing. They completely broke with the view that the new economy has largely fallen prey to unintended consequences and been a victim of its unprecedented growth and reach. They attributed agency and responsibility.
There was also a clear if not explicitly stated sense that the comment was aimed at one company in particular: Facebook.
Is this view justified? After reading 'An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook’s Battle for Domination', it is hard to see things differently.
An exemplary piece of reporting by New York Times journalists Sheera Frenkel and Cecilia Kang, it stands apart from rivals by drawing upon years of following the company and hundreds of interviews...