Babbage: Signal and noise

<p>Social media platforms face one of the most testing weeks in their history as they try to filter the <a href="https://www.economist.com/briefing/2020/10/22/social-medias-struggle-with-self-censorship?utm_campaign=babbage&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">real election news from the fake</a>—host Kenneth Cukier asks whether they are up to the task. In the data economy, does privacy equal power? And, how to harness the <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2020/10/17/how-to-send-underwater-messages-without-batteries?utm_campaign=babbage&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">sound of the deep sea</a> to power underwater devices.</p><p><br></p><p>Please subscribe to <em>The Economist</em> for full access to print, digital and audio editions: <a href="http://www.economist.com/podcastoffer?utm_campaign=babbage&amp;utm_medium=podcast&amp;utm_source=third-party-host&amp;utm_content=show-notes" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.economist.com/podcastoffer</a></p> &#10;&nbsp;<br /><hr><p style='color: grey; font - size: 0.75em; '>See <a style='color: grey; ' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>