70 BARRON’S November 22, 2021
An Internet Reset
Is Within Our Reach
D
iscussions on Cap-
itol Hill and in
legislative houses
across Europe in
recent weeks have
yet again been
dominated by the
harmful effects of social media.
Yet again, lawmakers are seeking
answers around failures that are built
into the design of the internet’s cur-
rent model.
Yet again, policy makers and Silicon
Valley executives are sparring over
whether tech companies should face
greater oversight and more-stringent
regulations, or whether they should be
allowed to change their practices vol-
untarily and without penalty.
And yet again, the conversation is
centered around how to fix a model that
is undeniably and irretrievably broken.
Enough. It is long past time to
move beyond a technology infrastruc-
ture that generates profit from harm.
Despite the internet’s many bene-
fits, its current model warps our eco-
nomic system by monetizing personal
data and selling it to the highest bid-
der. Social media has wrecked public
discourse by prioritizing clicks over
truth and by making misinformation
and outrage more profitable than facts.
The technology that underpins ev-
erything we do is designed to benefit
platforms over people and, as we in-
creasingly move our lives online, is
eroding the civic institutions that
should strengthen and unite our soci-
ety. These harms disproportionately
affect individuals who are already vul-
nerable, driving a culture of toxic in-
equality. And the resulting lack of trust
is threatening our very democracy.
It is time to fix the problem once
and for all.
Big Tech has made good on its
promise to “move fast and break
things” in ways that are simply be-
yond repair and can’t be addressed
solely by regulation. Instead of explor-
ing ways to repair a broken model, we
should focus on a new internet archi-
tecture built on a more equitable and
more positive foundation. Ultimately,
we need to completely reset our cur-
rent technology model and develop a
new approach that is focused on us-
ers, optimized for access and equity,
and built for the common good.
T
his may sound bold but in
fact is within our reach. We
have the ability to build an
open-source web protocol
that, by its very design, would shift
the control of personal data from pri-
vate companies to individuals, enable
internet users to own their social net-
works and plug them into various
applications, and pave the way for
people to benefit directly from the
economic value of their data.
An open web architecture lays
the foundation for many to work to-
gether to build new models that can
release us from our dependence on a
surveillance economy and the algo-
rithmic choices made by few corpora-
tions. It can give us new tools to col-
lectively fight disinformation and hate
speech. It can encourage innovators to
develop competitive products that
could better serve society. Ultimately,
it provides an opportunity to shift the
control of social networks from corpo-
rations to the people that build them.
In addition, we can create a gover-
nance framework to guide this next
generation of technology by bringing
technologists together with social
scientists, ethicists, and legal and
policy experts to promote a cross-
disciplinary “ethical tech” approach
that will make progress durable over
the long term.
And with enough support from
people and institutions, we can con-
struct a movement for change that
prioritizes internet users over plat-
forms, opens new doors of opportu-
nity, and ignites positive social, eco-
nomic, and civic engagement.
This new direction represents a new
era for the web. And it’s our surest
path forward. We need to return the
ownership and control of personal data
to individuals, where it belongs; embed
standards and principles into technol-
ogy, where they can do the most good;
and redirect the economic benefits of
the internet from a few powerful com-
panies to society more broadly.
Despite the problems our current
web infrastructure has caused and
exacerbated, we have the ability to
build a more open and equitable civic
architecture—an internet for the com-
mon good. With better technology and
a governance framework to guide it, we
have a real opportunity to strengthen
our democracy, repair our social fabric,
create a more equitable economy, and
ensure a better future for us all.
Of course, realizing this vision will
not be easy. If we’re going to meet this
moment—and end the current cycle of
failure and outrage—we need to take
collective action, and do so with ur-
gency. We also need to face the fact
that we need a new approach. Tweak-
ing a failed system won’t solve the
problems that have been exposed.
Minor adjustments—and even major
regulations—cannot restore trust or
create the kind of inclusive framework
that will take us where we need to go.
It is time to stop focusing on a re-
pair strategy. Instead, we must move
quickly and collaboratively to trans-
form how the internet works—and for
whom it works.B
Frank H. McCourt Jr. is a civic entrepreneur,
the chairman and chief executive officer of
McCourt Global, and the founder of Project
Liberty.
By Frank H.
McCourt Jr.
OTHER VOICES
By rebuilding the web, we could repair the
social fabric, promote equality, strengthen our
democracy, andensure a better future for all.
illustration by The Project Twins