Exhibit B: How to Save the Internet by Nick Clegg (2025). The author, a former British politician and Meta employee, describes the threats to an "open internet," and how these same threats might be addressed. He details previous government actions to circumscribe the internet, concerns over privacy, concerns over how the flow of data across borders threatens those in power, and strategies which might be employed by both Big Tech and national governments to ensure that the internet remains the valuable resource which it presently is.
My Thoughts: I liked Haidt's book and I agree with it completely. It's well-researched and chimes with what I've observed as both a father of two girls and a teacher of younger children. Haidt's book is, if a little dry, very concise and to the point. We definitely need to give more thought to how the prevalence of screens and the popularity of platforms such as Instagram and Facebook are affecting our kids. Dumping them in front of an iPad or a phone for hours might seem harmless, but this is actually far from the case.
I liked Clegg's book a lot less. He makes some good points, but at times his idealism verges on whimsy. He also spends a lot of time apologizing for Meta, a company he hangs much of his reputation on. It isn't a good look. Much of what's in this book was known to me already, and the sources he cites are very haphazard. He even takes shots at Haidt's book in one chapter, though I think he largely mischaracterizes that other, better work.
Given its title, Clegg's book had two responsibilities, these being: 1) explain why the internet needs saving, and 2) explain how it can be saved. I don't think that it accomplishes either task, though I do agree with many of the points its author makes.
I often found myself wishing that Nick Clegg had removed himself from the arguments he makes a little more. Too much of this book depends upon claims that he knows things simply because he worked at Meta. It's too much like asking us to take certain bits of evidence on faith. I have no reason to believe that he was informed of every study Meta ever performed, just as I have no reason to believe that he was always among those (or even informed by those) making decisions at that company.
Unlike Haidt, Clegg also takes forever to reach his points. He tends to circle around ideas with words, never actually embracing them until far too many paragraphs, pages and even chapters have gone by. He could have taken lessons from Haidt's more concise, more academically rigid approach. More of what Clegg writes could be have also been backed up with (solid) research. Personal anecdotes only go so far toward convincing the skeptical.
Critics have attacked Haidt for creating a "moral panic" along the lines of many such panics triggered by new technologies. Yet despite these criticisms (which Clegg echoes), Haidt's work stands on its own and deserves the praise it has received. Clegg's book, on the other hand, is shoddily done (perhaps even ghostwritten), and deserves to be passed over. He (or his ghost writer) voices valid concerns for the future of the internet, but I'm sure that these concerns have been voiced better elsewhere.
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