Op-Ed in the taz: Toward a Collective Break from Platform Dependency

How can media outlets, universities, companies, and public institutions reduce their dependence on the major platform corporations? ZeMKI member Dr. Leif Kramp, together with co-author Dr. Stephan Weichert from the VOCER Institute for Digital Resilience, addresses this question in an op-ed for the taz. Under the title “Everyone, Please Get Off Now,” they advocate for a coordinated move away from the dominance of commercial social media platforms and outline an approach for collective action using the concept of a “convoy.”

The article’s starting point is the observation that Big Tech’s power is based less on technological superiority than on collective habits. As long as organizations cling to platforms individually out of fear of losing reach, the existing dependency will persist. Kramp and Weichert therefore argue that political regulation alone is not enough. They contend that joint strategies involving the media, academia, civil society, and public institutions are necessary to strengthen alternative communication infrastructures oriented toward the common good.

This article builds on the authors’ research on digital resilience, and the future of public communication, and is also part of the VOCER initiative “The Convoy,” which is currently being developed in collaboration with various partner organizations.

Read the guest article (in German language): https://taz.de/Abhaengigkeit-von-grossen-Plattformen/!6195096/