By offering internet to an indigenous ethnic group – until now isolated from all modern technological innovations – Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites have brought as many benefits as harm.
Along the Ituí River, deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, lies a remote village of the indigenous Marubo ethnic group. A scene that is, to say the least, incongruous takes place there, under the eyes of Jack Nicas and his photographer Victor Moriyama, both reporters for the New York Times. While tribal elders tell their stories, the teenagers have their eyes glued to their smartphones.
Some people scroll through their recommendation feed on Instagram. A man sends a message to his girlfriend. And others crowd around a telephone broadcasting a football match. The arrival of the internet in this remote province of Brazil was made possible thanks to Starlink, Elon Musk’s company. This constellation of satellites in low orbit, the fruit of the work of the company SpaceX, which makes it possible to create a dense and fast network capable of providing internet connectivity, even in the least well served regions.
An arrival which was initially greeted with joy – since it allows indigenous populations to make video calls, for example. “When it happened, everyone was happy,” says Tsainama Marubo, one of the women at the head of the tribe, to the two New York Times reporters. “But now things have gotten worse. Young people have become lazy because of the internet. They are learning the ways of white people,” she breathes, regretting that the young people of her tribe are losing interest in ancestral traditions, such as manufacturing. body paint and shell jewelry. She nevertheless puts things into perspective: “But please, don’t take away our internet.”
Addiction, exposure, violent games and pornography
A dilemma arises for the Marubo ethnic group. The Internet has become essential… but at what cost? After only 9 months with Starlink, this tribe is already facing the same challenges that American households have been facing for years. Teenagers addicted to cell phones, addictive social networks, risks of online exposure, violent video games, misinformation and even teenagers exposed to pornography.
When Starlink was deployed from 2020, one of the tribe’s leaders, Enoque Marubo, immediately saw the potential of Starlink. He who had spent years in the city – where the internet was a common Source of energy – thought that he could give “new autonomy” to his people by allowing them to “communicate better”, “be informed” and “tell their own stories “.
This is why, in 2023, he made a 50-second video with a Brazilian activist, in the hope of finding generous donors to finance Starlink.
Just a few days after the video in question was broadcast, Allyson Reneau, an American space consultant, responded to the request and assured that she wanted to help these natives “out of pure altruism”. Allyson Reneau buys around twenty Starlink antennas and delivers them to the Marubos. They will be installed on top of poles and connected to solar panels in the villages.
Immediately, the internet is available. And immediately it became a problem, to the point of “changing the routine in a devastating way,” admits Enoque Marubo. He, like other leaders, had to impose limited usage windows: two hours in the morning, five hours in the evening and the full day on Sunday.
“We can no longer live without the internet”
During these connection phases, many Marubos remain glued to their smartphone, browsing Whatsapp. A valuable communication tool for coordinating villages, alerting authorities in the event of health or environmental problems, and staying in contact with loved ones, of course, but also for accessing more controversial content such as that linked to pornography.
“Some young people share explicit pornographic videos in discussion groups, it’s shocking for our culture. We fear that young people want to try,” explains Alfredo Marubo, one of the tribe’s leaders.
During a meeting bringing together more than 200 Marubos last April on this subject, discordant voices were raised. “I don’t want people to post in the groups, distort my words,” said a leader, demanding that the internet be cut off during the debates. “Everyone is so connected that sometimes they don’t even talk to each other anymore,” laments another.
Despite concerns, Enoque Marubo’s father says a shaman predicted the arrival of a global connection tool, for better or worse. Enoque believes the internet will bring more benefits than harms, “at least for now.” Whatever happens, he says, “We can no longer live without the internet.”
 the daily life of an Amazon tribe){kind=link}