{"id":31745,"date":"2024-02-13T22:26:02","date_gmt":"2024-02-14T06:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=31745"},"modified":"2024-02-13T22:26:03","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T06:26:03","slug":"tech-authoritarians-of-san-francisco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/02\/13\/tech-authoritarians-of-san-francisco\/","title":{"rendered":"Tech Authoritarians of San Francisco"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Elon Musk and the rise of reactionary Big Tech (and big money) politics<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/a>FRAMELAB<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

FEB 12, 2024 (theframelab.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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by Gil Duran | FrameLab<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It has become impossible to ignore Silicon Valley\u2019s big shift toward authoritarian politics. Last year, we wrote about how Elon Musk\u2019s purchase of Twitter was an effort to tilt the scales in favor of Republican authoritarianism. Musk even imitates Trump\u2019s strongman antics, spewing a constant stream of conspiracy theories, culture war attacks and racism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Musk is not alone. For the New Republic, I wrote about how a group of tech oligarchs is spending millions of dollars in a campaign to shift San Francisco politics toward reactionary, regressive, Republican politics. It\u2019s a bold effort to seize significant political power in the heart of Democratic California.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Here: \u201cThe Tech Plutocrats Dreaming of a Right-Wing San Francisco<\/a>.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I also joined the New Republic\u2019s Greg Sargent on the Daily Blast Podcast to discuss the formation of Musk\u2019s authoritarian ideology and what Big Tech\u2019s right-wing politics mean for the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Listen Here: \u201cElon Musk\u2019s Unhinged Pro-MAGA Tweets Expose Tech Oligarchy\u2019s Dark Side<\/a>.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authoritarians are spending millions to frame the political debate and destroy democracy. Help fight back by becoming a paid subscriber. Because your support matters!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upgrade to paid<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tracking the authoritarian shift<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Over the last two years, FrameLab has tracked the develop of Musk\u2019s effort to \u201credpill<\/a>\u201d American politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When he bought Twitter in November 2022, we warned<\/a> that Musk wanted to create a social media platform that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2026Empowers dictators, fascists, white supremacists, Nazis, disinformation and misinformation. It\u2019s a world in which billionaires enjoy total power over everyone else, and where straight white men hold dominion. It\u2019s a world where people can no longer distinguish truth from lies because technology has sucked us all into the manipulative babble of Twitter. Musk seeks to create a dynamic where organized misinformation shares equal billing with respected journalism, and where people can\u2019t tell the difference between the two.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In December 2022, we charted<\/a> how Musk (like Trump before him) was manipulating social media to keep himself at the center of the political discourse:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Social media algorithms are the processes, rules and signals that determine which information gets elevated to the widest possible audience. With his $44 billion purchase, Musk has become Twitter\u2019s main algorithm. He is using his powerful account, with its 120 million followers, to control the flow of information and thus control our brains.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And when Walter Isaacson\u2019s new biography of Musk was published last year, I analyzed the key elements of the CEO\u2019s authoritarian \u201cstrict father<\/a>\u201d politics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1.     A cruel dominating father (who Musk both hates and emulates)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2.     A pronounced lack of empathy (he considers empathy a weakness)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.     A strict hierarchical worldview amplified by a messiah complex (Musk truly believes he is the savior of humanity)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Now this style of politics is manifesting in San Francisco, where Musk returned after claiming he was moving to Texas. But instead of moving to Republican states, these tech plutocrats have a new plan: To buy San Francisco City Hall in 2024 and create a parallel Republican power center in deep blue California. If it can work in San Francisco, they believe it can work anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks for reading \u2014 more to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further reading:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n