This isn't about the platforms alone - it's about the people designing the algorithms behind them. For Stiglitz, Musk and Zuckerberg have built ecosystems where algorithmic amplification, powered by personal data collection, fuels engagement, controversy, and division - all in the name of profit and power.

He links these mechanisms to the rise of populism and the erosion of democratic institutions, a theme explored in his recent book The Road to Freedom.