📘 Lexicon Entry: Platform Capitalism

A contemporary economic system where digital platforms extract value from user data and network effects while concentrating market power and shaping social behavior

Platform Capitalism represents a contemporary economic movement that organizes production, distribution, and social interaction through digital platforms that extract value from user data, network effects, and algorithmic mediation. This system goes beyond traditional capitalism by creating new forms of commodification, surveillance, and behavioral modification that reshape human relationships and social structures. Platform Capitalism intersects with theological concerns by creating new forms of economic alienation and social fragmentation that exacerbate the conditions described by the Nova Effect, where individuals navigate proliferating options without stable communities for discernment. The platform economy’s emphasis on individual choice and algorithmic curation undermines the relational foundations necessary for Interindependence, creating conditions that make people susceptible to the simplified identities offered by movements like MAGA Christianism. This system challenges theological alternatives that emphasize community formation and relational reception by creating economic incentives for isolation and consumption.

Contemporary Movement

digital capitalism, platform economy, surveillance capitalism, network effects, algorithmic mediation, data extraction, social media, economic system

Geevarghese-Uffman, Craig. “Platform Capitalism.” *Political Theology Lexicon*. https://www.commonlifepolitics.com/p/lexicon. Accessed [date].

Extraction of value from user data and network effects

Algorithmic mediation of social interaction and information consumption

Concentration of market power in dominant platform companies

Creation of new forms of behavioral modification and surveillance

Disruption of traditional economic and social structures

Mark Zuckerberg

Elon Musk

Jeff Bezos

Sundar Pichai

Tim Cook

Jack Dorsey

Dominant technology companies with global reach and market concentration

Venture capital ecosystem funding platform development and expansion

Regulatory capture and lobbying apparatus influencing policy formation

Academic and think-tank institutions promoting platform-friendly policies

International coordination through trade agreements and technology standards

Implicit anthropology emphasizing individual choice and consumer sovereignty

Technological optimism that treats efficiency and connectivity as ultimate values

Market fundamentalism that subordinates social relationships to economic exchange

Libertarian ideology that resists collective governance of technological development

Emerged from internet commercialization and venture capital investment

Accelerated through mobile computing and social media adoption

Consolidated through network effects and market concentration

Globalized through international expansion and regulatory harmonization

Complex relationship with both progressive and conservative political forces

Libertarian resistance to government regulation combined with corporate welfare

Influence through lobbying, campaign contributions, and regulatory capture

International tensions over data sovereignty and technological independence

Pervasive influence on social interaction and information consumption

Transformation of work, education, and entertainment through platform mediation

Creation of new forms of cultural production and consumption

Global reach with significant impact on developing economies and societies

Control of information distribution through platform algorithms and policies

Influence over public discourse through content moderation and recommendation systems

Creation of new forms of media production and consumption

Tensions with traditional media institutions and journalistic authority

Increasing regulatory scrutiny and antitrust enforcement

Growing public awareness of surveillance and manipulation

International competition and fragmentation of global platforms

Potential for both democratic accountability and authoritarian control

Studies of surveillance capitalism and data extraction economics

Research on platform effects on democracy and social cohesion

Analysis of algorithmic governance and behavioral modification

Related Primary Concepts: Nova Effect, Interindependence, MAGA Christianism

Key Mutations: Practical Atheism, Tribal Epistemology

Contemporary Movements: Christian Nationalism, Identity Synthesis

Theological Alternatives: Participatory Freedom, Being With

Historical Context: Plantation Capitalism

May 22, 2025

*This entry is part of the Political Theology Lexicon, accessible exclusively to subscribers. View the complete lexicon to explore related concepts and the full theoretical framework.*