A REMOTE tribe in the Amazon rainforest are now addicted to watching porn and scrolling social media sites after getting internet access through Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites.
Locals of the Marubo people, who continue to live in scattered settlements alongside the UItui River in Brazil, are also increasingly falling for online scams.
YouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon ForestThe Marubo tribe have been given access to the internet for the first time[/caption]
Some members of the tribe are now said to be hooked on pornography and instagramYouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon Forest
Members of the tribe beam as the new product is unpackagedYouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon Forest
Here Starlink is transported on a boat down a riverYouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon Forest
Elon Musk gave internet access to the local people to support them in their daily lives – and the tribesmen were quick to realise the true power of the internet.
Urgent medical help – including choppers capable of airlifting – could now reach them almost instantly, something that previously took days.
Locals were also quick to discover they could now get in touch with their friends and family in no time through social media.
However, just days after they were introduced to the powers of the mighty internet, major troubles began that the locals were previously unaware of.
Leaders of the Marubo now say that people in their community are increasingly becoming lazy and are always stuck to phones.
They say young people have got hooked on porn as well as doom scrolling on social media sites such as Instagram.
Enoque Marubo, 40, told reporters from the New York Times how access to the Web has forced the tribe to change and transform drastically.
He said: “It changed the routine so much that it was detrimental. In the village, if you don’t hunt, fish and plant, you don’t eat.”
Another member of the tribe Alfredo Marubo revealed how the sudden exposure to pornography sparked a worrying sexual behaviour among the locals – especially young men and women.
They also began sharing obscene images scenes and explicit videos in the group chats, Alfredo added.
TamaSay Marubo, the first leader of the tribe, said the internet has now caused the people in her community to be lazy.
She said: “When [internet] arrived, everyone was happy. But now, things have gotten worse.
“Young people have gotten lazy because of the internet.
“They’re learning the ways of the white people.”
Elon Musk’s Starlink was made available in Brazil in 2022, seven years after being launched initially.
However, the groundbreaking internet technology could only reach the remote areas of the Amazon rainforest – and Marubo – in April this year.
Enoque, who got the chance to travel to big cities and see the modern way of life, believed that the internet could massively help the remote areas of his tribal community – especially with emergency services.
He contacted several activists in Brazil who work for the development of the Amazon rainforest and was able to secure 20 Starlink units from American philanthropist Allyson Reneau.
While the local tribal community spoke about the downsides of the internet, many of them – including the ones who complained – admitted that now they have tasted the power of the internet, they cannot live without it.
“I think the internet will bring us much more benefit than harm,” Enoque said.
“The leaders have been clear. We can’t live without the internet.”
While TamaSay quickly added: “Please don’t take our internet away.”
What is Starlink?
STARLINK is a satellite project launched by billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in 2015.
Musk intends to put 12,000 satellites into Earth’s orbit over next decade, possibly rising to 42,000 in future.
The “mega-constellation” will eventually be able to beam internet coverage to anywhere on the planet, according to SpaceX.
The California company says its network will provide users with high-speed, low-latency internet coverage.
Latency is the time it takes to send data from one point to the next.
Because Starlink sats are 60 times closer to Earth than most satellites, SpaceX’s WiFi latency is lower than traditional satellite internet.
The firm sends its satellites up in batches of 60 at a time and has deployed more than 1,400 into orbit since 2019.
They’re launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida atop unmanned Falcon 9 rockets, which are also built by SpaceX.
The effect of the low-orbiting tech on views of the night sky is a major concern, as they appear brighter than many stars and planets.
Astronomers and amateur stargazers have repeatedly blasted SpaceX for ruining their observations.
The company argues that its satellites are only bright shortly after launch because they sit in a low orbit.
Over several weeks, the satellites move further from Earth, apparently dampening their effect on space observations.
Elon Musk granted internet access to the locals to help them in daily lifeYouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon Forest
Tribespeople first discovered they could contact their families before they realised the full power of the internetYouTube/NAVI GLOBAL/Starlink in the Amazon Forest
AFPTech billionaire Elon Musk founded Starlink – here he’s pictured at a community health center in Bali[/caption]
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