Franco, Marta G. (2024). The networks are ours

Abstract

Marta G. Franco examines how big tech corporations have usurped digital spaces, transforming the internet and social networks into tools of control, exploitation, and surveillance. The author denounces the capitalist and patriarchal appropriation of these environments, dominated by a male and Western elite that perpetuates exclusion and inequality. Through a feminist, hacktivist, and decolonial perspective, she highlights the importance of creating self-managed, inclusive, and collaborative digital spaces, inspired by initiatives such as hacklabs and hackmeetings. The book advocates for a more ethical and diverse internet, where social movements and marginalized communities reclaim control.