{"product_id":"the-information-state-politics-in-the-age-of-total-control-9781250363121","title":"The Information State: Politics in the Age of Total Control","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWe're often told that disinformation \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eis everywhere and that it's endangering \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eour democracy. But what if the war \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eon disinformation itself is really just \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ea weapon to squash any and \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eall legitimate dissent?\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Information State\u003c\/i\u003e is an incisive examination of how we reached the point where anything that contradicts the dominant narrative can be labeled dangerous disinformation. \u003ci\u003eTablet \u003c\/i\u003econtributor Jacob Siegel charts how the technological infrastructure built to make society safer and more rational has steadily replaced democratic freedoms with systems of digital control. Commercial Internet applications now double as military-grade surveillance and influence tools. Government tech partnerships established after 2001 in response to the global war on terror took on a life of their own and now target Americans. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eInstead of competing for voters' support, the information state uses censorship, mass surveillance, and algorithmic manipulation to shape public perceptions as it tries to engineer reality. Government officials requested that social media companies boost stories about Donald Trump's alleged connections to Russia, while censoring those about Hunter Biden's laptops, the origins of the COVID-19 virus, and the war in Ukraine. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn alliance between government and tech companies formed to wage the war on terror has evolved into an unholy new kind of technocratic state and turned against America's own citizens. Laws signed by President Obama as he left office fused together the media, NGOs, the national security complex, and big tech companies into an unelected ruling party. In short, the information war came home and completely overtook American politics during the hyperpolarization of the Trump era and the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic. \u003ci\u003eThe Information \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eState\u003c\/i\u003e is an urgent, necessary book that sounds the alarm on where society is headed in the age of AI if we don't relearn how to think for ourselves and ask searching questions about whether information can ever be a substitute for truth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Jacob Siegel\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Henry Holt \u0026amp; Company\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/24\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.13lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.46h x 6.43w x 1.17d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781250363121\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/01\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2026 pg. 67\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/05\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJacob Siegel\u003c\/b\u003e is a contributing editor at \u003ci\u003eTablet \u003c\/i\u003eand a coeditor of and contributor to the anthology \u003ci\u003eFire and Forget: Short \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eStories from the Long War\u003c\/i\u003e. He served as a US Army officer in Iraq and Afghanistan and later returned to the Middle East as a journalist. His writing has appeared in \u003ci\u003eThe New York \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eTimes\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Free Press\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePolitico\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Baffler\u003c\/i\u003e, and elsewhere.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Jacob Siegel \/ Hardcover \/ English","offer_id":47792947986589,"sku":"9781250363121","price":47.34,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_4a9ea1fe-de21-46db-896c-67a2e9c2a938.jpg?v=1774985338","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/the-information-state-politics-in-the-age-of-total-control-9781250363121","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}