FT Weekend Magazine - June 25, 2022

45 Pages·2022·12 MB·English

JUNE25/262022
Thetrashmonster
thatswallowed
electoralpolitics
ByStephenBush

June25/262022
FEATURES
18.
TheDetained
Democraticpoliticiansand
campaignerscoulddieinjailas
aresultofChina’scrackdownin
HongKong.ByPrimroseRiordan
andChanHo-him
22.
Ownthelibs
Crowd-pleasingandopponent-
angeringstuntsareevolvingin
darkways.ByStephenBush
26.
Thehardcore
Aninvestigationintothesurprising
defactoregulatorsoftheadultfilm
business.ByPatriciaNilssonand
AlexBarker
36.
▶ Betterthanyouthink
Tofuisacornucopiaoftaste.
Noreally.ByFuchsiaDunlop
INTELLECT APPETITES WIT&WISDOM
9 TimHarford 14 SimonKuper 33 TimHayward 44 MirandaGreen
Afewimportantnotes It’sgettinghotinhere Outdoorsanddrop-dead Pitymypoorplants
onnotifications 16 ImogenWest-Knights inLondon 45 Games
10 MadhumitaMurgia Thenot-so-GreatGatsby 34 Recipe 46 TheQuestionnaire
Whistleblowerstake Blackenedlambrump ClarkePeters,actor
onFacebook withpeas
12 Gallery 41 JancisRobinson
YorgosLanthimosin MySt-Emilionmarathon
Tinos,Greece 43 FantasyDinner
byCynthiaShanmugalingam
Issuenumber977•Onlineft.com/magazine•FTWeekendMagazineisprintedbytheWalsteadGroupintheUKand ONTHECOVER
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Nopartofthismagazinemaybereproducedinanyformwithoutthepriorexpresspermissionofthepublisher
Marginaliaby
PPurobdliuschtiniogn::DDaapnhnnyeMKaocvkalcins,,ahdevaedrtoisfiandgvperrotidsiuncgt,ioFnT–Wdeaenkieenl.dmMacakglianz@infet.–codmapohrnme.akgosvcaocps@[email protected] NadineRedlich @FTMag
FT.COM/MAGAZINE JUNE25/262022 5
Letters
Thegentleparent’sdilemma ishowutterlytoxicmobilephones Idefinitelyhaveanxietyfrom
byCourtneyWeaver areforchildren’semotional obsessivescrolling.Iinclude
Althoughprobablymorethan developmentandwellbeing. scrollingthroughtheFT(and
threedecadesagonow,Istill Notthephonethechilduses,but writinginanepostsinthe
clearlyremembertoomany insteadtheparents’obsessiveuse Commentssection)inthat.
peoplebelievedgentleparenting attheexpenseofeyecontactand DereckviaFT.com
waswatchingdaytimetelevision, engagementwiththechild.
holdingalargeschoonerofsherry Apparentlyuselessateverything Interestingread.Asaparent,this
andsmokingalow-tarcigarette. viaFT.com isagrowingconcernasourkidsare
Themovementdescribed gettingolder,yetnotaneasytopic
cogentlybyCourtneyWeavermay Thehighpricesocietypaysfor toaddress.
wellhavedrawbacksandcritics,but socialmedia @wil_vermontviaTwitter
itseemsfarmoredesirabletome, byTimHarford
albeitmaybeonlyinsmalldoses. Socialmedia(especiallyInstagram) Alovelettertovoicenotes
RobertBoston,Kingshill hasmadetheworldmuchsmaller. byMadisonDarbyshire
Ivisitedasmallfishingvillage Hmmm,loveandhatevoice
Weallstartoutparentingwithhigh intheHighlandsrecently,anda notes.Somepeoplehaveanatural
idealstodothings“right”,butsoon historiantoldmethatmanyofthe ▶ JUNE18/19 brevityinthewaytheyspeak,
enough,realitydawnsandweresort mennevercamebackafterthewar. Gentleparenting givingmeaperfectnuggetof
towhatworks:theoppositeof Itwasn’tbecausetheyalllosttheir informationoranurgentheads
this.Thegoodthingisthat,within lives.Somesawcitiesandforeign up.Othersjust…drift.
reason,itdoesn’tmatter.Aslongas countriesanddecidednottoreturn. TheveryfirstthingIdowhen
childrenfeellovedandyourvalues Igrewupinthe1990sinanarea Iseeavoicemessageislookat
arebasicallydecent,they’llmake of“multipledeprivation”,andwas itsduration.
theirownfreechoicesandbecome onceaskedlaterinlifewhatitwas SytypeviaFT.com
thepeopletheydecidetobe. likegrowinguppoor.Ihonestly
AmusedfromHongKong didn’tknowIwaslacking.Wewere LessonsinAIfrommymop
viaFT.com allinthesameboat. byGillianTett
Theproblemkids(andeven Imindlesstheideaofmyrobot
Lovedmydadandhavenoregrets someadults)seemtohavetodayis cleanertryingtomoptheflower
buttherewasnowayIwasgoingto thattheyareconstantlyreminded bed,andmorethatitmight
repeathisapproach.Ittotallypaid ofwhattheydon’thave,where realiseonedaythathumansare
off.Theboysarenowmenandthey theycouldbeandhowthey suboptimalforacleanenvironment
blowmysocksoff. couldlook.Just20yearsago,you andremoveustoo.
onomasticatorviaFT.com comparedyourselfwithyour rbb89472viaFT.com
immediatepeers,andthosewho
Lotsinthisarticle.Weare wereobnoxiouslyrichwerefilm It’snotintelligence,it’spattern
definitelygentleparenting, starsandrockstars.Theywere recognition.Itmightlooklike
pushedontousbypsychologists exceptions.Todayit’severyone thought,butitisn’t.There’salong
helpingusdealwithonepre-teen’s butyou. waytogobeforeweeventouchon
seriousself-harm.Placingan Thesocialcomparisonwas artificialgeneralintelligence.
emphasisonqualityattentionfor oncerestrictedtoyourimmediate ChabichouviaFT.com
thechild,givingasmuchcontrol vicinity–village,town,school.Kids
aspractical,recognisingand todayarecomparingthemselves Germany’syoungwinetalent
engagingwiththechild’sfeelings, withtheirpeersaroundthe byJancisRobinson
TOCONTRIBUTE
andworryinglessaboutnormal globe,virtually,inahighlyedited Shh…don’ttelleveryone.Nothing
stufflikemessyrooms,uneaten environment.It’snosurprisethat Youcancommentonourarticlesonline toseehere,Frenchwinepurists.
[email protected].
mealsandunfinishedhomework, youngpeoplearestrugglingwith YoukeepbuyingyourBurgundy
Pleaseincludeadaytimetelephone
hasgotusoutofareallyawful theirmentalhealth. andI’lllookaftertheGermanstuff.
numberandfulladdress(notfor
place.Onepointthathascomeup MelSutton,Glasgow publication).Lettersmaybeedited. InspectorNewseauviaFT.com
DidyouknowFTWeekendhasapodcast?Weexploretoday’s emildnanomeL=
culture,bigideas,nuancedquestionsandwhatitmeansto )naMdrihTehTmorf(emiLyrraH+nomeLhtieK ziuqerutciP
enotsniWyaR.01notsniWtreboR.9ednalloHsioçnarF.8
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srewsnaziuQ
6 FT.COM/MAGAZINE JUNE25/262022

IInside:Snomedon’tlikeithotp14 tellect
UndercoverEconomist
TIMHARFORD
Notificationsand
themeaningoflife
Switchingtoanewphoneiseasyenoughthesedays.The
wheezingoldermodelformedahuddlewiththeshinyoversized
newthing,andwithinafewminuteshadeffectedanear-com-
plete digital handover. One exception was the notification
settings.Astheyresettothedefault,mynewphonebeganto
beepandbuzzincessantly,likethestrangeoffspringofR2-D2
andacheapvibrator.
Aphotoappstartedtryingtosellmeaprintalbum.Atrain
ticketappproddedmenottoforgetmyupcomingjourneys.The
FinancialTimesappurgedmetoreadthelatestheadlines.More
disturbing,GoogleNewsinstalleditselfanddidthesamething,
exceptfornewssourcesIdon’tfollowanddon’twantto.Most
absurdofall,everysingleincomingemailannounceditselfwith
abeepandateasingextractonmyhomescreen.Fortunately,I
don’thavesocialmediaonmysmartphone;Icouldonlyimagine
thecacophonyifIdid.
Thiswasallsimpleenoughtofix.Calendar,textmessagesand
phonecallsarenowtheonlyappsallowedtointerruptme.Still,
itwasannoying.Iwondered:surelyeveryoneswitchesoffmost
notifications,right?Right?
Perhapsnot.IstumbleduponanessaybyGuardiancolumnist
CocoKhanmarvellingathowmuchcalmershefeltafterturn-
ingoffnotifications.Shedescribedthispeaceascompletely▶
FT.COM/MAGAZINE JUNE25/262022 ILLUSTRATIONBYGUILLEMCASASÚS 99
Intellect
◀unexpected,“anunintendedconsequenceofatinytweak”.She NotesfromtheCuttingEdge
wentontoexplainthatWhatsAppalonehadsenthermorethan MADHUMITA
100notificationsadayandthatshehadonlymutedtheapps
becauseshe’dbeenonholidayinBali,andthephonewasbuzzing MURGIA
allnight.Aswellitmight,giventhatsocialmedianotifications
Twowhistleblowers
werestillon.Shefeltcalmerwhenthisstopped.Whocouldhave
predictedthat? bothalikeindignity
Onthefaceofit,itisabsurdthatshewassurprised.Butit
isalwayseasiertobewiseaboutotherpeople.IreadKhan’s
account as a cautionary tale for all of us. We humans can
adapttoalot;it’seasytosleepwalkintoastateofchronic
stressanddistractionwithouteverreflectingthatthingscould
bedifferent. LastweekinLondon,twowhistle- outsourcingfirminNairobiwhere
Khan’sexperienceseemscommon.Oneofthemostrobust blowers bound by a common he worked, were reportedly paid
findingsinbehaviouralscienceisthatdefaultsettingswield experienceandasinglecompany about $2.20 (£1.80) per hour.
anoutsizeinfluenceoverourchoices,evenwhenitistrivialto cametogetherinsolidarity.Frances “WhenIwenttoKenya,Iwasfine.
changethosedefaults.Itisnowonderthatmanyappspesterus Haugenrosetoprominencein2021 I went to [work for] Facebook…
endlessly,bydefault.Appmakersclearlybelievewe’llputup asawhistleblowerfrominsideFace- I came back broken,” he told the
withit,andtheymayberight. book,nowknownasMeta.Daniel Londonaudience.
Onestudy,publishedin2015byresearchersattheTechni- Motaung,a30-year-oldSouthAfri- The event highlighted several
calUniversityofBerlin,foundthatonaveragesixoutofseven canlawstudent,islesswell-known starkdifferencesinHaugenandMot-
smartphoneappswereleftintheirdefaultnotificationsettings. butworkedasacontentmoderator aung’s experiences taking on one
Givenhowmanynotificationsareclearlyvalueless,thissuggests forthecompanyinKenyathrougha oftheworld’smostpowerfulcom-
thatinthefaceofendlessnotifications,manysmartphoneusers third-partyfirmcalledSama. panies.AsHaugenacknowledged,
Ohavelearnthelplessness. Thetwoweremeetingatanevent “Igotthebenefitsoftheraceand
organised by Motaung’s lawyers, genderissues.Ithinkitwouldbevery
fcoursewesometimeswanttoknowimme- Foxglove. Individually, they pro- difficultforFacebooktocomeafter
diatelywhensomethinghashappened.AsI videdastrikingcontrast.Haugenis meatthispointbecauseitwouldbea
amfondofsaying,adoorbellismoreconveni- afasttalker,adeptatbringingstories hugePRliabilityforthem.”
entthangoingtothedoorevery90secondsto backtoherexpertiseintechnologi- Bycontrast,Motaungwasfired
seeifanyoneisthere.Althoughthattrade-off calsystems.Motaung,wearingjeans fromSamaafterdemandingbetter
wouldchangeifthedoorbellitselfweresound- andabrightshirt,spokeatamore pay,workingconditionsandmental
ingeveryfewminutes,dayandnight. measuredpace.Althoughheisanat- health support. Sama claims
Butmostofushavetoomanynotificationsenabled.“Notifi- ural orator, he had Motaung violated
cation”isadishonesteuphemism,anyway.Thecorrectwordis totakeabreakhalf- companypolicy.He
Speakingout
“interruption”,becauseitpromptstherightquestion:howoften way through the returned home to
againstinjustice
doIwantmyphonetointerruptme? evening as he was SouthAfricadueto
A2017studybyMartinPielotofTelefónicaResearchandLuz overwhelmedbythe inyourworkplace his visa status, and
RellooftheHuman-ComputerInteractionInstituteinvestigated burdenofhispost- isnevereasy hasstruggledtofind
howpeoplefeltwhentheirphoneswereentirelysilenced.Pielot traumatic stress another job since.
andRellostumbled,revealingly,rightatthestart.Theytriedto disorder, which he Metasaysitdidnot
recruitvolunteerstomuteeverythingforaweek,butgaveup developedafterthegrimworkof employMotaunganddeniesthatit
becausesofewpeoplewerewillingtodoso,andthosewhowere moderatingdistressingcontenton operatesinKenyaatall.Hislawyer,
willingwouldbesuchoutliersastoprovidenoinsightaboutthe Facebook.Buthereturnedtothe CoriCrider,whohadjoinedDanielon
restofus. stageandstayeduntiltheend. stage,saidFacebookhadnotreached
Sotheresearcherstriedagain,witha24-hour“DoNotDis- Inrecentyears,thesocialmedia out.“It’sjustsilence,”shesaid.
turb”challenge.Allinterruptionswereblocked,evenincoming gianthasfacedaseriesofallegations Speaking out against injustice
phonecalls.Theresultswereintriguing:peoplefeltlessdis- aboutitsharmfulimpactonsoci- inyourworkplaceisnevereasy.A
tracted and more productive, but they also felt cut off and etyanddemocracy,includingfrom womanItalkedtolaterthatevening
worriedaboutbeingunresponsive. whistleblowers who risked their saidshewasmovedtotearsbythe
Therewasnosignthattheywerelessstressedormorerelaxed, careersandreputationstospeakout. paneldiscussion.Shehadworked
butperhapsthatisnotasurprise.Itisnotcompletelyrestfulto Most,likeHaugen,havebeenSilicon with several whistleblowers and
knowthatyourbossmaybeinfuriatedbecauseyouarenotpick- Valleyengineerswhohelpedbuild knewtheyoftenregrettedwhatthey
ingupyourphone. thecompany’salgorithmsandmod- didandshrankfromthelimelight
NotmanyofuscanadoptKraftwerk’sapproach:thegreat erationsystems,andspeakfroma afterwards,forgoodreason.Thefact
electronicbandsilencedthetelephoneintheirstudio.Ifyou positionofrelativeprivilege. thatMotaungwasclearlystruggling
wantedtocallthem,fine.Theywouldanswer,butonlybyprior But it is rarer to see whistle- tocopeyetsaidhewouldblowthe
arrangementandatpreciselytheagreedtime. blowersfromthecompany’sother, whistlealloveragain,wasrare,she
Thereisahappymediumhere,Iamsure,anditwillvaryfrom invisibleworkforceofabout15,000 toldme.“That’scourage.”
persontoperson.ButIsuspectKraftwerkareclosertotheopti- people,oftenlocatedindeveloping AsforMotaung,hesaidhehad
malcompromisethanaremysmartphonedefaults. countries.Contentmoderatorssuch onlyonequestionforMeta’sboss
OliverBurkemanputsitbestinhisbookFourThousandWeeks: asMotaungareoftenrequiredtosign MarkZuckerberg.“Willyouinter-
ourattentionisnotjustascarceresource;itislifeitself.“Atthe non-disclosureagreementsforbid- veneinNairobi?Yousayyoudidn’t
endofyourlife,lookingback,whatevercompelledyouratten- dingthemfromsharingdetailsof know.AndsoI’mtellingyou.Now,
tionfrommomenttomomentissimplywhatyourlifewillhave theirworkevenwiththeirfamilies. youknow.Goandtakecareofit.Do
been.”Glanceatyetanothernotification,andyouarequiteliter- Forworkconfrontingimageryof what’sright.”
allypayingwithyourlife. humansacrifice,beheadings,hate
speechandchildabuse,Motaung MadhumitaMurgiaistheFT’s
TimHarford’slatestbookis“HowtoMaketheWorldAddUp” and his colleagues at Sama, an Europeantechnologycorrespondent
10 FT.COM/MAGAZINE JUNE25/262022