Graham Burnett warns of 'human fracking' by tech giants in Madrid talk
On June 10, historian Graham Burnett, aged 56 and a professor at Princeton University, presented a talk titled 'Abrazar de nuevo el mundo' at the Espacio Fundación Telefónica in Madrid. He introduced the concept of 'human fracking,' likening the actions of digital platforms to those of extractive industries preying on human focus for profit. Burnett criticized a 2017 Google article that blurs the lines between human and machine attention. He called for a movement similar to 1960s environmentalism to safeguard our psychosocial landscape, highlighting the importance of uninterrupted community spaces. This lecture was part of the 'Attention and Flourishing' congress held from June 10-13.
Key facts
- Graham Burnett, 56, is a Princeton professor and co-founder of Friends of Attention.
- He spoke on June 10, 2026, at Espacio Fundación Telefónica in Madrid.
- Burnett coined 'human fracking' to describe how tech platforms fracture attention for profit.
- He criticized the 2017 Google paper 'Attention Is All You Need' for conflating machine and human attention.
- The talk was part of a collaboration between Fundación Telefónica and Museo Universidad de Navarra.
- The congress 'Attention and Flourishing' runs June 10-13 at Museo Universidad de Navarra.
- Participants include Clare Carlisle, Adam Green, Richard Kearney, and Dario Robleto.
- Burnett called for a political movement to protect the 'psychosocial environment.'
Entities
Artists
- Graham Burnett
- Matthew Clemente
- Gabriel Pérez-Barreiro
- Clare Carlisle
- Adam Green
- Richard Kearney
- Dario Robleto
Institutions
- Boston College
- Princeton University
- Friends of Attention
- Fundación Telefónica
- Museo Universidad de Navarra
- Espacio Fundación Telefónica
- University of Navarra
- Center for Psychological Humanities and Ethics
- King's College London
- Georgetown University
- The Washington Post
Locations
- Madrid
- Spain
- United States
- Iowa
- Nebraska