Claim OwnershipUnderstood: Who Broke the Internet?
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Host Cory Doctorow coined the word "enshittification" to describe the state of the modern internet: a broken down, decaying place, once full of promise, now overrun with intrusive ads, hateful trolls, aggressive algorithms, zero privacy, and AI-generated slop, with every billionaire tech titan in a race to the bottom to bleed their users and their customers alike.
It can feel like it was inevitable — but it didn't have to be this way.The modern internet is the result of decisions made by powerful people, at key moments in history, despite repeated warnings about where it would lead.
In Understood: Who Broke the Internet?, Doctorow traces the downward spiral from the heady days of '90s tech-optimism through to today's rotten "enshitternet." You'll meet everyone from visionaries to villains to regular people just trying to survive in today's online world. And you'll discover who broke the internet — and, more importantly, a plan to fix it.
Know more, now. Understood is an anthology podcast that takes you out of the daily news cycle and inside the events, people, and cultural moments you want to know more about. Over a handful of episodes, each season unfolds as a story, hosted by a well-connected reporter, and rooted in journalism you can trust. Driven by insight and fueled by curiosity…The stories of our time: Understood.
Season 1 - The Naked Emperor: the rise and fall of bitcoin king Sam Bankman-Fried.
Season 2 - The Pornhub Empire: the story of how a Montreal-founded company came to dominate the adult industry.
Season 3 - Modi’s India: how one man rose from poverty to the peak of political power.
Season 4 - Céline: the surprising cultural, political and business alchemy that created a superstar.
Season 5 - Who Broke the Internet? The internet sucks now, and it happened on purpose.
31 Episodes
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;Resize=(3000).jpg "Bonus: Click Here from Recorded Future News")
A former American IRS investigator responsible for some of the earliest dark market takedowns has been in Nigerian custody since February. Neither Nigerian nor the US authorities seem to be distinguishing Tigran Gambaryan from Binance, the company where he works. The Click Here podcast from Recorded Future News is a bi-weekly tech news podcast and this episode features Jacob Silverman, the host of The Naked Emperor: Understood to help dive into this story. More episodes of Click Here are available at: https://therecord.media/podcast
;Resize=(3000).jpg "Bonus: Cory Doctorow chats about his new novel on Bookends with Mattea Roach")
In this special bonus conversation, Cory Doctorow sits down with Bookends host Mattea Roach to discuss his latest novel, Picks & Shovels. The book is the third in his series about forensic accountant Martin Hench, who investigates financial crime in Silicon Valley.When the book ends, the conversation begins. Mattea Roach speaks with writers who have something to say about their work, the world and our place in it. You’ll always walk away with big questions to ponder and new books to read.You can find Bookends wherever you listen to podcasts, or here: https://link.mgln.ai/5tjomL
;Resize=(3000).jpg "The Naked Emperor Trailer – Season 1 of Understood")
In The Naked Emperor journalist Jacob Silverman explains how Sam Bankman-Fried built and destroyed FTX, a multi-billion dollar crypto currency empire. Who helped? Who was hurt? And will anything change following one of the most stunning financial collapses in modern history?The Naked Emperor is season 1 of Understood from the CBC. All episodes are available now.
Sam Bankman-Fried wasn't like other crypto moguls: he drove a Toyota Corolla, he was an advocate for government regulation, he said he would give billions away to charity. That is, until he lost it all in what has been called “one of history’s greatest-ever destructions of wealth.” Sam Bankman-Fried, aka SBF, had an empire. His cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, and hedge fund, Alameda Research, together were worth billions. Celebrities sang his praises, and politicians took his donations. Then, it all collapsed – almost overnight. There were millions of FTX customers. Now, they don’t know where their money is. Host Jacob Silverman, co-author of a forthcoming book about crypto and fraud, takes a closer look at the hype around SBF and FTX, and how it only grew, even as other crypto companies crashed around them. How powerful was Sam Bankman-Fried? And how did he initially manage to hang on, to thrive even, as other giants tumbled towards bankruptcy?
2We return to the beginning of Sam Bankman-Fried’s lucrative foray into crypto and ask: how did it all fall apart? Sam Bankman-Fried rose to the top of the crypto world with help from his friends. Gary Wang was a former fellow math-camper and brilliant programmer; Caroline Ellison was a former colleague at an elite Wall Street firm and an avid LARPer on the side. While still in their twenties, they were entrusted with billions of dollars of customer and investor funds. But in retrospect there were signs that maybe their enormous fortunes weren't created simply through their supposed technological and financial genius. For transcripts of this series, please visit here.
In the weeks after FTX filed for bankruptcy Sam stuck to his story: he did not commit fraud. FTX’s post-collapse CEO claimed the company had been a managerial and financial disaster, writing that he had never seen “such a complete failure of corporate controls and such a complete absence of trustworthy financial information.” In response to his cratering public image, Sam Bankman-Fried talked. A lot. He exhibited an almost reckless desire to tell his side of things, insisting he could explain – and vindicate – himself. It was an exceptionally bizarre move for someone who had lost not just his personal fortune, but potentially the funds of millions of customers. Even as U.S. prosecutors filed charges, and his former friends turned on him, SBF was unwavering. With the legal odds against him, why would SBF risk so much by refusing to shut up? Update: Since this episode was published, U.S. prosecutors have added a new charge against Sam Bankman-Fried, accusing him of conspiring to bribe one or more Chinese government officials. The charge has not been proven in court. For transcripts of this series, please visit here.
Sam Bankman-Fried couldn’t have marketed FTX to the masses on his own. He had help – from the institutional investors who brought in the big bucks, to the celebrity endorsers who told the public that FTX was “a safe and easy way to get into crypto.” One FTX brand ambassador was Kevin O’Leary, from the reality show Shark Tank. Host Jacob Silverman questions O’Leary about his due diligence before accepting the multimillion dollar endorsement deal. We also hear from everyday investors and hopeful beneficiaries of SBF’s charitable largesse and learn how their hopes were dashed on the rocks of alleged fraud. Zooming out, we learn that a lot of people may be responsible for what happened to FTX and that the losses, especially in a big alleged financial fraud scheme, can reverberate widely. Fourteen years into the crypto experiment, we survey the damage and the successes, and ask what we can learn from the disaster that Sam Bankman-Fried left in his wake. For transcripts of this series, please visit here.
Jacob Silverman sits down on CBC's Front Burner podcast to discuss how the biggest crypto exchange in the world is being sued by an American regulator accusing Binance and its billionaire founder of breaking a string of laws and misusing investor funds. Changpeng Zhao and his company say they will fight back "vigorously."
Today we bring you a bonus episode of The Naked Emperor. As Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial kicks off in New York, host Jacob Silverman is back to bring you up to speed on the latest. What’s happened at the courthouse in the lead-up to the trial? And what’s expected in the weeks to come? Joining Jacob is Zeke Faux, an investigative reporter at Bloomberg, and the author of “Number Go Up: Inside Crypto’s Wild Rise and Staggering Fall.”
A jury has found FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried guilty on seven counts, from conspiracy to fraud, following the collapse of his crypto exchange last year. Speaking with Front Burner host Daemon Fairless, Jacob Silverman walks us through Bankman-Fried’s trial and explains what the verdict means for FTX customers and the cryptocurrency industry.
Pornhub — that site you only access on your browser’s incognito mode? It gets way more views than Netflix. But because of the sheepishness and stigma around porn, it’s treated as if it’s fringe, instead of what it really is: one of Canada’s largest cultural exports.In The Pornhub Empire: Understood, hear the story of how a Montreal-founded company came to dominate the adult industry — only to have its reputation obliterated in a massive scandal — and where it stands today.The Pornhub Empire is a new season of Understood, from the CBC. Four episodes, starting March 11.
How did a handful of competitive foosball players in Montreal create the world’s largest online porn site? And what do a picturesque Dutch cabin, thousands of pornographic VHS tapes, and the subprime mortgage crisis have to do with it?This is episode 1 of The Pornhub Empire: Understood. Hosted by Samantha Cole.Full transcript here.
Not only did Pornhub become a massive moneymaker, it also helped push porn into the spotlight by using data, clever PR, and the power of celebrity. How did Pornhub make itself a household name? This is episode 2 of The Pornhub Empire: Understood. Hosted by Samantha Cole.Full transcript here.
Jane was coerced into making a pornographic film, and told it would never be shared online. Then, it was posted on Pornhub, over and over again. How did a scandal involving the hosting of sexual abuse material seriously damage the lives of many and nearly destroy the company? This is episode 3 of The Pornhub Empire: Understood. Hosted by Samantha Cole.Full transcript here.
New name, new owners, new rules. Can Pornhub rebuild its reputation and remain one of the world’s biggest porn sites? Or will the company be disrupted out of business by a new crop of online porn entrepreneurs?This is episode 4 of The Pornhub Empire: Understood. Hosted by Samantha Cole.Full transcript here.
How did one man rise from poverty to the peak of political power and secure the adoration of nearly one billion people? And how did he overcome accusations — that he denies — of complicity in religious violence and alleged international assassination plots?In the latest season of Understood, Mumbai-based journalist Salimah Shivji examines the remarkable rise, and incredible power that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has acquired. And as his country embarks on a massive election, Shivji asks the pressing question: what’s at stake if he wins again? Coming May 13, 2024.
How did Narendra Modi, the son of a humble tea seller rise up the political ranks to become one of the most powerful leaders India has ever seen? And did bloody religious riots damage his political future, or turbocharge it?Access the transcript for this episode here.
Narendra Modi is the most popular political leader on the planet. His supporters boast that he’s transformed India’s economy – it’s now the world’s fifth largest, surpassing its former colonial ruler, Great Britain. How did Modi shake off the memory of deadly religious riots to win the devotion of hundreds of millions of Indians across the country and the world?Access the transcript for this episode here.
Entering his second term stronger than ever, Modi can wield his power in ways that shock many inside India and out. There are crackdowns on dissent at home and accusations his government is tied to assassination plots abroad. His government denies these allegations, but the question remains: how far will Modi go to stop those who challenge him?Access the transcript for this episode here.
India’s democracy has been called a miracle. Now, some fear it’s at risk.From Gandhi’s legacy to Bollywood films, how is Modi rewriting the story of India?Access the transcript for this episode here.
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Great ending to a very informative mini series. I wish the concept of Technofeudalism was introduced earlier in the series as that was a major perspective shifter
Excellent so far, hope there's more episodes.
I really liked the podcast. being a 40-something, I remember the 2008 crisis cited in episode 4... Well, the author is true: the names have changed, but the whole pictures is the same. I know the why ( the infamous FOMO effect), but I do not really understand the HOW. how is it possible for professional investors, institutions, public figures to be repeatedly cought in such delusions, leading normal people to ruin because they followed those unaware windbags? 😐 Good job to Silverman and its crew🙂
My god, O'Leary is just a shameless liar whose wealth is built on bullshit and opportunistic depravity. He tries to cover it up with technical-sounding gibberish and malapropisms--e.g., "invest" when he means "gamble" and "asset class" when he means "casino". However, the real blame rests with a society that not only fails to hold such charlatans to account, but also actually WORSHIPS them while systematically producing more idiots for them to exploit.
@10:52: There's the sleight of hand. Crypto is marketed as a currency, but when things go awry, its defenders talk about it as a speculative asset. The follow-up questions to that duplicity should be: (1) If it's just a speculative asset, why did you endorse it as a currency, which indicates it's a HEDGE against volatility in equity markets? (2) If it's a speculative equity asset, equity in what? Cryptocurrency is distinct from holding equity either in the mint or the market for that crypto. So equity in what? If it's just a product, then there should be a value in use, but there isn't. So it's clearly just an arbitrary, useless, imaginary collectible! How could he POSSIBLY claim there's such a thing as due diligence on what are essentially commoditized NFTs?!?! This guy is a charlatan who preys on imbeciles, and there are LOADS of those. The guest who lost money claimed that he trusted "all the experts" and that "all the experts" praised FTX. Bullshit. He listened to cele
Caroline Ellison sounds like a giggling twit. These montebanks duped people because many people are stupid; they *crave* get-rich-quick gimmicks. From its inception, crypto has been BS, and its advocates have been both unable and unwilling to explain what it is (e.g., a store of value, a basis of exchange, an arbitrary useless collectible) and how it works (e.g., monetary policy, deposit insurance, regulation, checks against conflicts of interest). Moreover, the flippant claims about the intended use (e.g., a store of value) were undercut by the hype as a speculative asset (a useless collectible) and the fact that crypto markets largely track equity markets rather than hedge them. It's always been obvious BS--a speculative bubble for an imaginary asset. People who think tech jargon is pixie dust or who chase get-rich-quick schemes are their own worst enemies. There's a lot of reasonable finger-pointing at FTX--the supply side--but we should be more worried about the droves of tenac
Even at 1.25x playback, the host sounds slow and sedated.