The Internet: A Corporate Hijacking of Digital Freedom?
The Internet: A Corporate Hijacking of Digital Freedom?  
Podcast: Ruined By The Internet? | Uncovering the human cost of our digital world
Published On: Sat Dec 20 2025
Description: The internet was supposed to be where the free exchange of knowledge and ideas happened. But has it instead become a place increasingly controlled by a handful of companies - where inconvenient ideas are suppressed, and the original promise of an open web has been quietly hijacked?We're joined by Wouter Constant - co-founder and researcher at Nostr, an open protocol for decentralised, censorship-resistant communication - who is actively building the alternative and understands better than most how the internet lost its way.Welcome to Ruined By The Internet? - the show where we examine how technology is shaping modern life - whether we want it to or not.Follow or subscribe to never miss the next investigation - new episodes regularly.Visit us: https://www.ruinedbytheinternet.com/Help us investigate ourselves: https://www.ruinedbytheinternet.com/survey/Support the show: https://buymeacoffee.com/rbtishowIn this episode we investigate how the internet shifted from open network to corporate controlled platform, examine the role of government in shaping what we can and can't say online, explore the promise and challenges of decentralised alternatives like Nostr, and ask whether a genuinely free internet is still possible - or whether centralisation always wins in the end.00:00 - The promise of the internet and how it was abandoned02:54 - The rise of centralised platforms and how it happened so fast05:54 - Investment, network effects, and how corporations captured the web09:00 - Government involvement and the censorship dynamic nobody talks about12:02 - Decentralisation and freedom of association: what the alternative looks like15:07 - The real challenges of building a decentralised internet18:08 - Platform responsibility and what user experience costs us27:09 - Who is actually responsible for what happens in digital spaces?29:44 - The evolution of decentralised social media32:30 - Nostr versus Bluesky: what's the difference and does it matter?35:30 - Identity and reputation in a decentralised world39:16 - How decentralisation handles content authenticity44:25 - Navigating AI-generated content in an open protocol50:51 - Building a safer internet for future generations: is it still possible?Guest links - Wouter ConstantNostr: https://nostr.com/Web of Trust Foundation: https://weboftrustfoundation.com/