EPISODE

With his vast network of satellites operating under Starlink, Elon Musk has been able to influence and privatize digital communications, and even impact Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against Russian aggression.

Repeat Hearsay Culture guest U. Virginia Prof. Siva Vaidyanathan joins Hearsay Culture Radio to discuss his December 2023 The Nation article about Elon Musk and Starlink. What can we take from Musk’s ability to dictate the communication capabilities of Ukraine’s military? Along the way, we discuss his vision, goals, management style, and impact on world events, and revisit where “internet utopianism” led us. 

“Is it really up to one billionaire of a collection of billionaires?…[Musk] is part of a collection of billionaires who are thoroughly convinced that they know what is best for the years and decades ahead…It’s so authoritarian at its core.”- Siva Vaidhyanathan

“Peace cannot exist without justice, justice cannot exist without fairness, fairness cannot exist without development, development cannot exist without democracy, democracy cannot exist without respect for the identity and worth of cultures and peoples.” -Rigoberta Menchú Tum

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash