Chris Stokel-Walker

Recent Articles

The Founder of 8chan Says America Must Build a Safer Internet

The founder of a toxic platform now says we need an FDA for social media

By Chris Stokel-Walker

Cloudflare Quietly Powers the Internet. Researchers Say It's a Haven for Misinformation

How back-end companies could play a bigger role in policing the internet

By Chris Stokel-Walker

The Real Threats to the Future of Netflix

The pandemic sparked a boom for video streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and Peacock. In 2020 and 2021, Netflix added 54.6 million subscribers, many of them in the frightening, isolating six months after the world...

By Chris Stokel-Walker

Why You're Seeing So Many Johnny Depp Defenders on TikTok

If you’ve opened TikTok in the last two weeks, you’ll have struggled to escape commentary or clips from the defamation trial brought by Johnny Depp against his ex-wife Amber Heard in a Virginia courtroom.The trial,...

By Chris Stokel-Walker

Why So Many YouTube and TikTok Stars Want to Sell You a Shirt (And Maybe a Burger)

Nearly three times as many children want to be a YouTube star when they grow up than those who dream of being an astronaut. But influencers are starting to shift their goals, too—making more and...

By Chris Stokel-Walker

Amazon Sellers Are Making Big Money on Nuclear War Survival Products

First, we expected takeout food on demand. Then we wanted groceries fast. Now, Amazon’s hottest products are bug-out bags, military meal replacement kits and iodine pills—taken in the event of a nuclear bomb dropping or...

By Chris Stokel-Walker

How Russians Are Dealing With an Internet That's Gone Dark

In early March, Russia’s internet began to feel like a ghost town. TikTok stopped publishing new posts. Media outlets pulled out their correspondents. YouTube stopped its creators from earning money on their videos. The digital...

By Chris Stokel-Walker

What the Murder of Christina Grimmie by a Fan Tells Us About YouTube Influencer Culture

Christina Grimmie was a fan of talented Disney starlets like Hannah Montana who parlayed careers in children’s television into pop music. Aged 15 in 2009, Grimmie uploaded one of her first tracks to YouTube —...

By Chris Stokel-Walker
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