Technological advancement seems to be reshaping not only how people direct their attention but also the economy itself, in ways that disenfranchise the average person. The Age of Extraction by professor of law, science, and technology Tim Wu (The Master Switch; The Attention Merchants) shows how those changes are happening. As an expert in competition and antitrust policies, he exercises that knowledge while analyzing how tech platforms have altered perceptions of what competition, and the stifling of competition, looks like today.
Wu explains in a forthright and commonsense way that despite the best efforts of the tech corporations to make it seem like there is a lack of resources for everyone, the amount of resources is not the problem. Rather, it is a distribution problem. While people used to exchange information and goods in the public agora, now the movement to do the same in digital spaces has added to the ability of platforms essentially to monopolize parts of the wider market. Wu argues that breaking up such monopolies is necessary to reinvigorate the economy. He offers a vision of the world where tech platforms can promote an economic model that supports everyone, not just major corporations: "It is not too late to restore the early promise of the Internet economy as a common square for commerce and an agent of economic uplift for all."
Accessible and engaging, The Age of Extraction addresses a critical problem and charts a path forward through both public skepticism of "accumulated economic power" and a distrust of "unaccountable power"--essentially mapping a way to trust in ourselves above tech platforms. --Michelle Anya Anjirbag, freelance reviewer