This book argues that craigslist challenges the corporate norms dominating the twenty-first-century web. More than just a platform for ephemeral content, craigslist represents an un-gentrified internet, embodying an older ideological approach to online politics that values technological simplicity, collectivism, and locality. Despite its flaws and obsolescence, it offers a model for how democracy can function online for most people. The first part provides historical context, detailing craigslist's evolution from an email list to a popular online marketplace and examining the development of classified and personal ads in the digital age. It also explores the platform's legal history, focusing on its battles over freedom of expression and data privacy, revealing insights into its political stance. The second part delves into everyday interactions on craigslist, highlighting the public and political dynamics that arise. One chapter features interviews with users, exploring the relationships within its secondary marketplace, while another analyzes job advertising and the shifting norms and class biases that emerge from its job-seeking practices. Lastly, it discusses the complexities of buying, selling, and connecting on craigslist, illustrating how the community negotiates and enforces its rules and norms. Through this lens, we can reflect on the evolution of the web and consider what aspects we might want to protect or change in
