Something has changed—the progressive spaces that used to be the biggest defenders of free speech and digital autonomy now frequently side with BigTech and Big Government to promote censorship and control.

NetworkAffects explores digital authoritarianism - privacy threats, bio-metric ID, surveillance, programmable currencies, and attacks on digital civil liberties and free expression from the ‘anti-disinformation’ and ‘fact-checking’ fields.

I have worked in human rights and technology for more than 25 years. For almost 18 years I lead EngageMedia, an Asia-Pacific digital rights, open and secure technology, and documentary non-profit.

I am now CEO of liber-net, a digital civil liberties initiative.

I worked with Matt Taibbi on the #TwitterFiles and led the mapping of the Censorship-Industrial Complex for Racket News.

In a past life I was a fellow of Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society and Film Studies Center, and MIT’s Open Documentary Lab. I’ve had the mis/fortune to get a close look at the vanguard driving this new technocratic authoritarianism.

I am developing NetworkAffects to bring accountability and transparency to the captured ‘anti-disinformation’ and digital rights fields.

Please consider a paid subscription to support my work.

You can contact me at andrew.lowenthal@protonmail.com or @NAffects.