When people hear the word “annexation,” they imagine military incursions, political takeovers, or maps being redrawn.
But Canada’s annexation has already happened—just not in the way you might expect.
We have surrendered our digital and communications sovereignty to U.S. corporate entities—social media platforms, cloud providers, and digital infrastructure owned and controlled by American companies. While we still wave our own flag, the reality is that our government, institutions, and even businesses rely on U.S.-owned platforms to communicate with our own people.
This isn’t just about convenience. It’s about control and influence. And we don’t have it.
The Illusion of Digital Communications Sovereignty in a U.S.-Dominated Digital Ecosystem
Ask yourself this:
How do Canadian institutions, leaders, businesses, and organizations communicate to Canadian audiences?
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X – all U.S.-owned propaganda machines. Yes, other communications vectors are used to reach Canadian audiences as well, but digital communications (aka, social media platforms) represent a HUGE portion of our collective strategic communications efforts.
Where do Canadians get their news?
Unless they are going directly to the digital source (i.e. the outlets themselves), they are no longer consuming news through social media thanks to Meta’s response to the Online News Act. More on this in a little bit, but for certain segments of the population for whom “out of sight, out of mind” is a state of being, when news disappeared from the ironically named ‘news feed,’ they stopped receiving news altogether.
Where do Canadian businesses and entrepreneurs build their brands?
Social media and advertising platforms owned by Meta, Google, and Amazon. In fact, how much money in terms of advertising dollars are funneled monthly - yearly - to these U.S. corporations? It’s nice to boycott U.S. products right now; feels good, right? Except your very presence on these platforms is helping line the pockets of the White House – every day.
Where does our data live?
Often in U.S.-owned cloud services (AWS, Microsoft, Google). More on this below.
The use of U.S. technology is so normalized, that it’s even installed on military platforms. But make no mistake; using U.S. platforms to communicate to Canadian audiences is rented visibility. Rented influence.
In every meaningful way, Canada’s digital town square is an American-controlled property. So many of our national conversations—political discourse, government announcements, and public safety alerts—take place on platforms that we do not own, do not regulate, and cannot hold accountable. Yes there are government apps available. But let's be honest, they neither offer the same end-user experience nor provide the all-in-one convenience offered by social media platforms, where community and connection (albeit illusory in many ways) comes with heaping doses of entertainment (necessary, thanks to the engineered dependency and dopamine loops created by the same platforms, which are essentially changing how humans receive and process information…but I digress).
What this has done is left us vulnerable to foreign influence, censorship, and data exploitation.
And when a foreign power controls your communication, who’s really in charge?
Traditionally, a country’s sovereignty is defined by its ability to govern itself without external interference. But in the digital age, sovereignty is no longer just about borders—it’s about who controls the flow of information.
And right now, that’s not Canada.
We have seen:
• The suppression of Canadian news on Meta’s platforms in response to the Online News Act, proving that U.S. companies can unilaterally decide what Canadians see (or don’t see). If you ever read my posts and think, “yeah, that’s a little extreme,” think about the impacts that Meta’s decision to suppress Canadian news had on our media industry, not only causing sharp declines in revenue and traffic, but also that Canadians are consuming less news as a result.
• Algorithmic control over political discourse, where content moderation decisions made in Silicon Valley determine what voices are amplified or buried in Canada.
• Data extraction at scale, where Canadian user data is harvested, stored, and monetized by U.S. tech giants, often without meaningful oversight.
• AI policies dictated from the U.S., where OpenAI, Google, and Meta develop and deploy artificial intelligence models that shape information, search results, and digital interactions for Canadians.
This is what annexation looks like in the 21st century. Not with boots on the ground—but with servers, algorithms, and corporate influence dictating the rules of engagement.
The Real Cost of Digital Dependence
Canada’s reliance on U.S. digital infrastructure, systems, and platforms isn’t just a sovereignty issue—it’s an existential threat to our ability to operate as an independent nation in the digital era.
1️⃣ Censorship Without Consent
The Canadian government does not control its own digital public square. If Meta or Google decide to deplatform Canadian voices, block news sources, or suppress information, there is no recourse. We’ve already seen this happen.
2️⃣ Economic and Business Vulnerability
Canadian businesses and entrepreneurs must play by the rules of U.S. platforms to survive. Changes to Meta’s or Google’s algorithms can destroy a business overnight, and our economic landscape is shaped by forces (ahem, tariffs?) we cannot control.
3️⃣ National Security Risks
When foreign-owned companies control critical infrastructure and digital communications platforms, our national security is compromised. From potential surveillance to cybersecurity threats, Canada is at the mercy of decisions made outside its borders. Social media has flown under the radar for a long time, thought of as a global entity, when really it's been advancing U.S. interests and propaganda since its inception.
Because we've never had cause to doubt the close relationship between our two countries, there was never a reason to suspect that the fun, social media platforms in our pockets were suspect. Canadian users, businesses, organizations, and public institutions all jumped on the bandwagon, completely oblivious to what was actually happening. LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media got it half-right; because social media isn't just weaponized. It's the weapon.
Is There a Way Out? Digital Sovereignty as the Next Frontier
Canada cannot afford to keep outsourcing its digital infrastructure and platforms to foreign entities. If we are serious about maintaining sovereignty, we must:
✅ Invest in Canadian-owned digital, social networking platforms for government, business, and public discourse and communications. Right now there are exactly two other platforms (Keek and Rumble), and both look like they were built by Russian bots (with Rumble linked to Truth Social).
✅ Mandate data localization so Canadian data is stored and processed within our own borders.
✅ Encourage businesses to build outside the algorithm and reclaim control over their audiences. This is a big one. Businesses should shoulder the responsibility of being among the first wave to build influence outside the algorithm – the reason being that businesses have been fuelling the ad revenue craze for years. Individual users – especially in Canada, and especially now, in our current Trump/Musk annexation threat climate – will follow (if they have somewhere to go). Canadians are eager to boycott American products, and even if they don’t leave Meta and X altogether, they most certainly will show up on Canadian platforms if given the opportunity to do so (and if the platforms themselves don’t look sketchy as hell).
✅ Develop independent AI and digital ecosystems to ensure we are not perpetually governed by American tech monopolies (and then be prepared to tell U.S. tech companies to pound sand when they inevitably come knocking).
If you’re reading this and wondering if any of this is really that big of a deal, I’ll leave you with this:
Every single platform of any importance, popularity, or influence, is U.S.-owned.
Every single search engine and alternative media platform out there (i.e. Substack, Medium, Pinterest) is U.S.-owned.
While the world was worried about Russia and China, the U.S. was quietly but openly building a digital empire, building influence and gaining control over a significant communications vector found in Western and allied nations around the world: social media.
They who control the algorithm controls the narrative.
But there is good news. People are waking up.
Canadians are rallying around boycotts. Entrepreneurs are waking up to the dangers of platform dependency. Alternative networks are emerging. And the conversation around digital sovereignty is gaining momentum. The shift toward sovereignty is happening.
Conclusion: The Takeover Has Already Happened—Now We Must Take It Back
Canada’s annexation isn’t a hypothetical future event. It’s a present reality. Our digital and communications infrastructure is already controlled by U.S. corporate entities, and unless we actively reclaim it, this dependence will only deepen.
Sovereignty isn’t just about political independence—it’s about owning the systems that shape our economy, culture, national identity, influence, and conversations.
The question is: Will we continue to operate as a digital colony, or will we reclaim what’s ours?
The choice belongs to every single person who uses these platforms.
0 Comments