COMMENT: On January 22, 2026, TikTok handed American control to a consortium of Larry Ellison's Oracle and an Abu Dhabi state fund called MGX. Ellison has given $26 million to Israel's military since 2014. MGX is chaired by the UAE's national security adviser, a country that criminalizes dissent, tortures prisoners, and surveils residents. The White House called it a national security win. For others it's a consolidation of power designed to silence. The First Amendment and Section 230 now shield these new gatekeepers from accountability.
A UK billboard campaign accusing Instagram of failing to protect users from scams was pulled just before launch, not by regulators but by media buyers wary of upsetting Meta, a major client. Created with scam victims and advocates, #IgnoredByInsta highlights the human cost of account hijacks and absent support. The incident exposes how commercial dependency in the advertising ecosystem can quietly suppress public criticism of powerful platforms.
Posted
