The Metaverse, Social Media, and Increasing Alienation In Capitalist Society
In this episode of By Any Means Necessary, hosts Sean Blackmon and Jacquie Luqman are joined by Kevin Gosztola, Managing Editor of Shadowproof, Co-host of the Unauthorized Disclosure podcast to discuss the extradition appeal hearing in the case of Julian Assange, the demonstrated revenge campaign the US seeks to wage on Assange and the doubt that casts on assurances made by the US government, and the continued prosecution of Assnage for his journalism across presidential administrations.
In the second segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Carlos Martinez, author and activist, co-founder of No Cold War, and co-editor of Friends of Socialist China to discuss the misleading attacks on China over climate, the reality behind China’s carbon emissions and its climate change mitigation efforts, how the Chinese economic system facilitates those efforts, and the hypocrisy of the west using the threat of climate catastrophe as part of its cold war drive against China.
In the third segment, Sean and Jacquie are joined by technologist Chris Garaffa, the editor of TechforthePeople.org to discuss Facebook’s rebranding as Meta in the aftermath of multiple controversies and scandals, the stark reality behind the metaverse, and how the metaverse reflects the 1992 novel “snow Crash” by providing a distraction from an increasingly dystopian reality.
Later in the show, Sean and Jacquie are joined by Brandon Sutton, host of The Discourse podcast to discuss the “Let’s Go Brandon” chant and the cult of personality around Donald Trump and other aspects of conservatism in the United States that it reveals, the cultural impact of comic books and the stripping of their complexity in the age of cinematic universes, and social media in the capitalist system.