About this podcast
The Techdirt Podcast, hosted by Michael Masnick.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 461 episodes
- Meet The EFF's New Executive Director · 53 minIf you know anything about Techdirt, you know we're big fans of the EFF and its decades of advocacy for digital rights and the open internet. Recently, the organization went…
- How To Stop Good Companies From Going Bad · 55 minThe concept of "enshittification" has helped illuminate why companies and their products so often get worse over time, but the causes of this process are complex and…
- Preserving The Web In The Age Of AI · 52 minRecently, Mike joined Dave Hansen, Mark Graham and Kendra Albert on a panel for the Future Knowledge podcast, a joint production of the Internet Archive and the Authors Alliance…
- Infrastructure For The New Private Internet · 53 minAs we work our way towards a better future for the internet, the most encouraging and exciting part is the people out there building towards that future. Kickstarter founder…
- The Dangers Of Product Design Liability For Social Media · 1 h 0 minWe've written at length about the dangers of the recent court rulings in California and New Mexico that say social media companies can be held responsible for certain uses of…
- Transaction Denied · 56 minIn the conversation about online speech, most of the attention tends to fall on the big social media platforms, while other intermediaries get overlooked — especially payment…
- The Future Of Section 230 · 1 h 22 minLast month, Mike participated in the Cato Institute's Section 230 at 30 event to mark the 30th anniversary of the passage of Section 230. The event featured a series of fireside…
- Mike And Karl Talk AI · 58 minThere's a notion that pops up in the comments here on Techdirt that Mike and our writer Karl Bode are deeply opposed in their opinions on AI and engaged in an epic ongoing…
- The Vision For The Decentralized Internet · 58 minThe Vision For The Decentralized Internet by Techdirt
- Answering Your Questions · 1 h 0 minTwo weeks ago, we ran a bit of an AMA experiment, with a call on Bluesky for fans of Techdirt to ask Mike any questions they might have. We got lots of great responses and now…
- The Supreme Court's Internet Cases · 54 minIn the last few years, the Supreme Court has been paying a lot more attention to the internet than it ever has before, and the cases keep on coming. This is already having a big…
- Does AI Remove Or Provide User Agency? · 59 minOn a recent episode of our other podcast, Ctrl-Alt-Speech, Mike was joined by guest host Konstantinos Komaitis for a far-reaching discussion about online speech. One point that…
- A Manifesto To Build A Better Internet · 56 minLast month, we dedicated an episode of the podcast to discussing our recently announced project to push for a better internet, The Resonant Computing Manifesto. This week, we've…
- Could News Publishers Embrace AI Via An API · 1 h 1 minThe relationship between journalism and AI has been off to an antagonistic start, with multiple court cases underway and plenty of discourse about what should happen next. There…
- The Resonant Computing Manifesto · 48 minEarlier today, we joined in announcing the Resonant Computing Manifesto: a call for restoring a culture of technology that empowers users and enriches their lives. The manifesto…
- Saving Democracy From Fascism · 1 h 2 minThree years ago, Mike Brock joined us on the podcast to discuss a decentralized web project, and more recently we've published several cross-posts from his Substack about the…
- Social Media Is Always Changing · 1 h 2 minFor two decades, the landscape of social media has been constantly changing, and the discourse about "free speech" has been changing alongside it. This week, we've got a bit of…
- Venture Capital Is Eating The World · 46 minIt was nearly 400 episodes ago when Catherine Bracy joined the podcast for a two part discussion to talk about Silicon Valley culture and what investors are willing to fund. Now…
- An Insider's View Of Decentralized Social Media · 55 minAs you know, we talk a lot about decentralization and protocols over platforms. When it comes to decentralized social media in particular, one person who has been working on it…
- The New Generation Of Independent Journalists · 41 minTechdirt recently passed its 28th anniversary as an independent online media outlet. Once, it looked like such outlets might take over, but then most were scooped up by…
- DuckDuckGo Wants You To Have More Control Over AI · 51 minWe've written a lot about how AI can empower users when employed the right way, but how this is difficult when a few giant tech firms control the technology. One company that is…
- The Fictional Censorship Cinematic Universe · 1 h 1 minLast year, Renée DiResta joined us on an episode of the podcast to talk about her book, Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality, all about the people who have…
- The Many Problems With The FTC's Pornhub Settlement · 1 h 6 minLast week, we published three separate posts that looked at the FTC's recent settlement with Aylo, the parent company of multiple adult websites including, most famously…
- Copyright And The First Amendment Collide At The Supreme Court · 46 minIn what feels like something of a throwback to much earlier days of Techdirt, the Supreme Court is getting into the weeds of the DMCA. Cox v. Sony is a case centered around…
- The Eternal September · 53 minWe've got a cross-post episode this week, with Mike's recent appearance on the Computer Says Maybe podcast hosted by Alix Dunn. The discussion starts out looking at…
- Blacksky Demonstrates The Promise Of Open Social Media Protocols · 58 minThe goal of Bluesky and the ATProtocol, and of the push for protocols over platforms in general, has always been to see more people building their own communities in a modular…
- Why Data Portability Is Crucial For The AI Future · 45 minAs we've been thinking and writing about the intersection of democracy and technology, especially burgeoning AI technology, we always come back to the core issues of user control…
- The Media Capitulation Index · 52 minOne of the most troubling things about this era in American history is the number of institutions that have caved to Trump's bullying and given him what he wants, especially when…
- What's Next For Ctrl-Alt-Speech · 39 minWe've got a bunch of brand new episodes of the Techdirt podcast coming over the next few weeks, but first we've got one special cross-post from our other podcast made in…
- Reclaiming The Internet · 52 minWe've got one more cross-post episode for you this week! A few weeks ago, Mike joined host Aaron Ross Powell on the ReImagining Liberty podcast for a discussion that digs into…
- A History Of Techdirt, And More · 1 h 7 minThis week, we've got a cross-post episode of Mike's appearance on Kevin Williamson's How The World Works podcast. Kevin conducted a wide-ranging interview that covers some of the…
- The Political Power Of Mockery · 58 minIn a world awash with misinformation and disinformation, those who spread and benefit from the chaos have worked hard to brand fact-checking and counterspeech as a form of…
- The Fracturing Internet · 47 minWay, way back during the SOPA/PIPA fight, a very important part of the resistance against the bills was coming from infrastructure operators who explained how they were…
- The FTC's Quixotic Social Media Inquiry · 58 minWe've got a cross-post episode for you this week, courtesy of the Tech Policy Podcast by TechFreedom, hosted by Corbin Barthold. Both TechFreedom and The Copia Institute…
- Blitzscaling For Tyrants · 56 minIn something of a followup to our last episode about Elon Musk's playbook, today we're digging deeper into the comparison between Washington and Silicon Valley and what it tells…
- The Elonification Of Government · 57 minWe've written a lot about how understanding the playbook Elon Musk used at Twitter is key to understanding his current playbook with DOGE. The people who literally wrote the book…
- The Rise Of The Open Social Web · 53 minThough the original promise of the internet has been twisted and distorted, today we're seeing more and more people working to restore decentralization and user power online. One…
- How Tariffs Are Impacting One Small Business · 45 minWe probably don't need to tell you that the current tariff situation is causing complete chaos in global supply chains, in large part due to the uncertainty — for all we know…
- The Problems With Age Verification · 49 minIt's hard to create a law about children online without first identifying who the children are. We've written a lot about the problems that arise with mandated age verification…
- Disruptive Tech Solutions For Reproductive Health · 43 minMany people don't think of reproductive health and reproductive rights as tech issues, but they very much are — moreso than ever in a post-Dobbs America. The internet is vital to…
- Ron Wyden On Chutzpah · 37 minIf you're a Techdirt reader, you're probably familiar with Senator Ron Wyden. In January, he released his new book It Takes Chutzpah, offering up a call for political boldness…
- Chris Hayes On How Attention Ate The World · 56 minIn the digital age, attention is a resource — but if we can have a little slice of yours, we've got a great conversation about that very subject for you to listen to. This week…
- A New Podcast All About Section 230 · 44 minWe recently announced the launch of Otherwise Objectionable, a brand new documentary podcast hosted by Mike in partnership with the Competitive Enterprise Institute, covering the…
- Murder The Truth · 58 minAt long last, we've got a fresh new original episode for you! This week, Mike is joined by David Enrich, business investigations editor for the New York Times, to discuss his new…
- What Twitter Teaches Us About DOGE · 23 minWe're finally getting back into the rhythm of things, and in fact right at this very moment Mike is recording a brand new original episode for next week on the podcast — but this…
- Copyright Versus AI: Hollywood & Creators · 1 h 1 minWe've got another cross-post episode this week! Recently, Mike appeared on The Dynamist podcast from the Foundation for American Innovation for the second entry in a four-part…
- Brendan Carr Is A Threat To Free Speech · 21 minWe've written about the many signs that Trump FCC pick Brendan Carr is eager to be America's top censor. Recently, Mike once again joined Andy Levy on The New Abnormal podcast…
- One Billion Users · 32 minLast week, we launched the crowdfunding campaign for One Billion Users, our new card game where players compete to build the biggest and best social media network. As is…
- Regulating Speech In An Age Of Fake News · 45 minWe've got another cross-post for you this week, and this time it's also a live panel recording. Recently, Mike joined a panel at Boston University Questrom School of Business…
