Can X’s rage baiting strategy survive? X, Grok AI, algorithms, and the war for attention
In this episode of the Can We Have Your Attention? podcast, hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham dive into the escalating crisis around algorithms, free speech, and corporate responsibility in the attention economy.
We explore how platforms like X and its AI, Grok, promote "complete freedom of speech" as a core product feature, and the disruption it creates - how does a business like X versus a business like Meta weigh up the reward of influence and attention against risks of public backlash, or breaking local laws?
We dissect the complex balancing act that global tech giants like Meta and Alphabet (Google) must perform, comparing their publicly traded strategies with the decisions made by privately-owned companies like X, and uncover how they try to satisfy users, advertisers, and global lawmakers all at once.
Algorithms: Washington Post: Evolution of the Facebook algorithm https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2021/how-facebook-algorithm-works/
Excerpt from Emily Baker-White’s book on the history of TikTok and its algorithm, Every Screen on Every Planet: https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilybaker-white/2025/09/27/origins-of-tiktok-algorithm-every-screen-on-the-planet-book-excerpt/
Buy the book here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781035049264
Business Insider on every change made by Elon Musk after taking over Twitter (now X): https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-twitter#november-2022-2
New York Magazine on how algorithm changes affect creators, looking mainly at YouTube - ‘The YouTube Vibecession’: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/the-youtube-vibecession.html
For a laugh: Facebook ad from 2012, unaffectionately known as ‘Chairs’, created by world-class ad agency wieden+kennedy, and directed by Oscar-winning film director Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu. I know.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSzoDPptYNA
Parodied to perfection on the HBO series ‘Silicon Valley’ - the Pied Piper ad, ‘Tables’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ4CuJm_lws
About The Show
Can We Have Your Attention? explores the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world.
Production Credits:
- Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham
- Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk
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