I saw this Netflix documentary was getting a lot of attention and I wanted to know what the buzz was all about. As most people who use cryptocurrencies, I am well aware of the abuses coming from big tech companies regarding their strategies to sell your attention as well as your private information to advertisers. So I was aware of pretty much everything included in the documentary.
The documentary explores and explains all the potential implications this big tech influence can have on both individuals and societies at large. The people explaining these dangers are those with experience in the industry. They are people who worked at Google, Facebook, Twitter etc. So they really know what they are talking about and these previous experiences give the documentary a lot of credibility.
The most original thing about this production was the way they portrayed the algorithms that determine your feed in social media. Each algorithm was the same guy dressed differently and working with huge touch screens inside a matrix. They discussed with each other how to increase the usage of the app and how to obtain as much profit as possible by selling ads.
This worked on par with a few fictional characters who played the part of a normal family with a few teens as siblings. These dramatizations were silly but the algorithms portrayed as actual individuals was very fun.
The topics explored are various such as the issue with the self-esteem in teens who are constantly bombarded with perfect looks in social media, how the social platforms can be leveraged to manipulate a population, how people can get radicalized thanks to the social platforms constantly feeding them new radicalized content, and how all of this can make it impossible to really differentiate what is true from what is false.
In the dramatization, it is also showed how can a person miss a good opportunity as a result of spending so much time consuming content on a social media platform. Big tech does indeed have an enormous amount of power over the population and this control can turn sinister very quickly. I am sure a lot of people know about social media platforms banning users due to their political views. Sadly, the bannings of users for ideological reasons wasn't explored in this documentary. Only the algorithms that determine the feed and the ads.
If you are aware of the dangers of Big Tech, this documentary won't provide any new information for you. Nevertheless, seeing industry insiders sharing their opinions might be an interesting watch. This documentary is impactful for those that aren't aware of what Big Tech does, but this doc only covers a part of the whole Big Tech topic. It didn't even cover censorship and political double standards from the platforms themselves.
So, I would recommend this documentary for preteens, teens, and their parents. So they can find a way to reduce the negative impact social media can have without the drastic decision of stop using them entirely.
The best
- It is good for more people to be informed about this topic.
The worst
- The dramatization was silly in most cases.
- There are more Big Tech dangers than those discussed in the documentary.
More information: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11464826/
Review: AAA
In numbers: 7/10