{
  "id": 382828,
  "title": "Historian Jill Lepore says Silicon Valley misreads science fiction and undermines democracy",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/historian-jill-lepore-says-silicon-valley-misreads-science-fiction",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-09T15:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TechCrunch",
    "slug": "techcrunch",
    "url": "https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/09/historian-jill-lepore-says-the-tech-industry-is-led-by-bad-readers-who-are-undermining-democracy/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Historian Jill Lepore argues that tech companies are eroding the foundations of democracy by assuming the roles of government. In her upcoming book \"The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State,\" Lepore contends that private corporations are increasingly taking on state functions, replacing the traditional liberal democratic nation-state. She likens this shift to a return to tyranny and mystification, driven by algorithms, corporations, and machines. Lepore, a Harvard historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, emphasizes that while she is not anti-technologist, she objects to the ways in which corporations have assumed state responsibilities without public consent. The rise of \"the artificial state\" marks an inevitable decline in democracy and equal rights, she asserts, as the nation-state is supplanted by machine-driven governance.",
  "summary": "On the latest episode of Equity, we spoke to Jill Lepore about \"government by machines\" and why Elon Musk is a bad science fiction reader.",
  "key_points": [
    "Historian Jill Lepore warns Silicon Valley misinterprets science fiction",
    "Corporations assume state functions, eroding democracy",
    "Rise of \"artificial state\" signals decline in equal rights"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/382828.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Hacker News Best",
        "title": "Analyzing data from Silicon Valley ventures and founders prosecuted for fraud",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/analyzing-data-from-silicon-valley-ventures-and-founders-prosecuted",
        "published": "2026-08-09T15:26:45.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}