Surveillance capitalists know too much to qualify for freedom

Evidence

We have carefully examined surveillance capitalism’s novel foundational mechanisms, economic imperatives, gathering power, and societal objectives. One conclusion of our investigations is that surveillance capitalism’s command and control of the division of learning in society are the signature feature that breaks with the old justifications of the invisible hand and its entitlements. The combination of knowledge and freedom works to accelerate the asymmetry of power between surveillance capitalists and the societies in which they operate. This cycle will be broken only when we acknowledge as citizens, as societies, and indeed as a civilization that surveillance capitalists know too much to qualify for freedom. — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1585

Categorization

• DEEPTHINKING: The thesis inverts the premise of every liberal entitlement discourse: the argument is that knowledge concentration, not ignorance, forfeits freedom’s justification. A paradigm-challenging claim about what freedom requires.
• XREF: connects to: Surveillance capitalists claim market freedom while dismantling the ignorance it was premised on — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1578; Surveillance capitalism rests on extreme inequalities of knowledge and power — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 45; Hyperscale surveillance capitalists barely depend on society for employees — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1593

Broader Connections

• Surveillance capitalism rests on extreme inequalities of knowledge and power #expands (0.90) — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 45
• Hyperscale surveillance capitalists barely depend on society for employees #expands (0.75) — Shoshana Zuboff, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, 1593