Escaping Algorithmic Binds: Creators vs. Corporate Platforms (w/ Bridget Todd & Rudy Fraser at SXSW)

The biggest social media platforms in the world have alienated their users and trapped them inside algorithms that only serve corporate interests. But there is good reason to have hope for the future of decentralized social apps, made for and by their communities.

In this live interview recorded at SXSW 2026 in Austin, Texas, Rabble speaks with Rudy Fraser, the creator of Blacksky Algorithms, and Bridget Todd, the host of the podcast There Are No Girls on the Internet and an affiliate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. "I want to see more optimistic visions of the future," Rudy says.

"I want to see less dystopian visions. I want to see more Afrofuturism...

There's lots of people talk about 'let a thousand flowers bloom. ' I think it [decentralization] does open up opportunities for people to be really creative."

Rabble, Rudy, and Bridget spoke about the evolution of the creator economy, how to build a more equitable internet, and why podcasts are the most democratic form of social media. “If you've ever listened to a podcast at the end, you probably hear the host say something along the lines of, Oh, subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts,” Bridget says.

“It really means something kind of radical because that's not just something that people say. It is true … If I say something that Apple doesn't like, Apple can't shut down my podcast because it doesn't work that way, thanks to the RSS feed.”