# The Information State: How is the State Surveilling and Manipulating us These Days?

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-communications-408774/the-information-state-how-is-the-state-surveilling-and-manipulating-us-these-days
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-communications-408774/the-information-state-how-is-the-state-surveilling-and-manipulating-us-these-days.md
Podcast: [New Books in Communications](https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-communications-408774)
Published: 2026-04-22T08:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK8416345247.mp3
Audio file: https://pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/NBNK8416345247.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-in-communications-408774/episodes/the-information-state-how-is-the-state-surveilling-and-manipulating-us-these-days
Duration seconds: 3259

## Resource

In this episode of International Horizons, RBI Acting Director Eli Karetny interviews Jacob Siegel, writer, Army veteran, and author of The Information State. Siegel traces how military information operations, post‑9/11 surveillance programs, and Silicon Valley’s rise converged to create a new public‑private regime of control over information, attention, and consent. He discusses the intellectual roots of technocratic governance from Francis Bacon and Leibniz through progressivism, World War I propaganda, and cybernetics, and explains how the “information state” differs from classical authoritarianism. Finally, Siegel reflects on Trumpism, the tech counter‑elite around figures like Elon Musk, and how AI may usher in a more “Pharaonic” and quasi‑spiritual form of politics beyond traditional expert‑driven technocracy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/communications

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-in-communications-408774/episodes/the-information-state-how-is-the-state-surveilling-and-manipulating-us-these-days/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-communications-408774/the-information-state-how-is-the-state-surveilling-and-manipulating-us-these-days.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.