Welcome to the second episode of the Palladium Podcast, where we explore the future of governance and society. This week, Jonah Bennett, Ash Milton, and Wolf Tivy review Stephen Borthwick’s article on China and Pasha Kamyshev’s piece on Facebook and how the state is supposed to grapple with the phenomenon of centralized social media and rival power centers.

References:

China’s Global Ambitions Can’t Escape Soft Power Competition by Stephen Borthwick. China’s global influence has largely expanded through economic mega-projects. However, the role of culture and soft power was essential to its historic prominence. Its growing economic strength must be understood through this lens.

Facebook’s Political Problems Are Inherent to Centralized Social Media by Pasha Kamyshev. The state faces the challenge of grappling with centralized social media companies as distinctly political entities. These companies may need to be replaced by decentralized social infrastructure that is less politically and socially problematic.