The Great Hack documentary on Netflix

[paulus]

Thanks to FRSTDWN & B.Smooth13 for posting this in the old thread - finally got to watch it last night - very interesting indeed. Thoroughly second their recommendation 👍

Most of it known, but packaged up in a way that makes the central thesis punch you in the face - that they used illegally harvested data to micro target & heavily bombard the 80,000 most influential voters in America and swing the election. And how did they not think that was subverting the democratic process? Spoiler: they did know, there was just lots of money in it.

The desperately needed reform of our democratic processes is the bigger picture. Money needs to be removed from the equation...

[gregfordyce]

Agreed. But it will never happen for that reason - all the money. This is a capitalist oligarchy - until that changes, you will never get money out of elections. Or get rid of the Electoral College. I know I sound defeatist, sorry. It would take millions of Americans rising up in protest, or a concerted, long-lasting general strike involving millions, to affect that kind of change - and Americans by and large are just too apathetic and/or dependent on their jobs to do such a thing.

[bsmooth13]

Hey! Glad you ended up watching this. It's going to be one of - if not the single most prominent - issues of our time, data rights/usage/security/etc. Seems to be to be an incredibly important issue, but one that the vast majority of folks don't comprehend. I think that will change in time as generations change over, but in the mean time, I don't really see a light at the end of the tunnel that makes me think any of that stuff is going to change - it's just too lucrative and easy to cloak from public view.