It’s a fable of our times: small investors unite to collapse Wall Street hedge funds through the stock of a struggling video game store.
But the online investor revolt involves much more. The Internet is changing the balance of power in society in unpredictable ways. And the same tools that empower the common man – allowing them to organize quickly, provoke strong institutions, and unleash chaos – can also give rise to extremist groups, harassment campaigns, or the January 6 Capitol Hill riot.
In the world of pseudonymous messages on the internet, excessive jokes and the reverse logic of the pandemic, riots come in all shapes and sizes and for all kinds of purposes.
Last week they led to a large increase in the price of GameStop shares. Who knows what will happen this week.
One thing is for sure: we will witness several things. More and more people have learned how to manipulate the system, either for a noble cause or for fun. If a Bernie Sanders meme with gloves can distract us and the Reddit board can scare the wonderful figures on Wall Street, maybe something good can come of it. True?
“The Internet can democratize access, disrupting the power dynamic between people and traditional institutions,” wrote Tiffany C. Li, a law professor and lawyer who focuses on governing technology platforms and privacy.
With GameStop, he added in an interview on Friday, the goal was to fight large hedge funds.
“But in other places, the goal may be worse. Online spaces are used to radicalize people to extremism, to plan crimes and hate attacks, “he commented. “The Internet is not really the bastard or the hero.”