The Gist

Facebook’s Data Monopoly

How big tech killed innovation and acquired too much information on us.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks at the F8 summit in San Francisco on March 25, 2015.

Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images

Listen to Episode 843 of Slate’s The Gist:

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This week, we learned that Russian-linked Facebook ads targeted swing states during the 2016 election. Initially hesitant about sharing information with the government, Facebook finally gave in to avoid a deeper discussion on regulation, but tech companies have grown so big that it might be time for the government to step in. Journalist Franklin Foer explains how tech has become so powerful, and why it’s essential to be skeptical of technological innovation. Foer’s new book is World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech.

In the Spiel, gun-control regulations.

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