The Network vs. The Despot

Those that study history know that not only is it not static, but that it tends to go though seemingly recurring periods. We’ve seen times where freedom flourishes, times when despots seem to be the flavor du jour, times where great bursts of innovation happen and where darkness and stagnation cast a pall.

Even in our modern day we see the tension between, “I alone can fix it,” and the power of grassroots and social networks to try and bring people together in a common cause.

This idea, the individual vs. the network is, according to esteemed historical Niall Ferguson, one of the most recurring tensions throughout history. He takes us through this remarkable journey in his book The Square and the Tower: Networks and Power, from the Freemasons to Facebook.

My conversation with Niall Ferguson:

Progress in a Networked Age

We are all part of networks. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram. All bring people together to share news, opinions and life. But in all this excitement about social networks, are we missing something? Why aren’t we using them to better decipher our collective national temperature and to better understand, appreciate and help each other? Rather than the “long tail” of technology pulling us apart as some claim, perhaps it really is the key to bringing us together. Perhaps only by using networks and crowdsourcing to bring people closer together, can we really see the gulf between us.

Steven B. Johnson, author of WHERE GOOD IDEAS COME FROM, points to the power of these peer networks in his new book Future Perfect: The Case For Progress In A Networked Age.


My conversation with Steven Johnson:

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