Dead Internet Theory

There’s been a lot of talk about AI and how it impacts jobs, how it will change the creative landscape, and what will happen with our lives. I’ve also been reading “Understanding Media”, the book the coined the phrase “The Medium is the Message”. His opinion on the word “medium” seems to be a bit more loosely defined as technology vs. medium in a more traditional sense. But he saw electronic communication as an extension of the nervous system and really began the global village concept and conversation.

I also ran across this dead internet theory recently. Thinking about AI, an extension of our nervous system, and how this all connects is strange and feels like it’s killing any sort of village feeling. Robots are taking over our expressions, our communication, corporations are overrunning and controlling any connections we make.

An interesting quote from the book: “Archimedes ones said, “Give me a place to stand and I will move the world.” Today he would have pointed to our electric media and said, “I will stand on your eyes, your ears, your nevers, and your brain, and the world will move in any tempo or pattern I choose.” We have leased these “places to stand” to private corporations.”

Maybe the internet isn’t dead, but it’s been sold and leased to private corporations.