The past week of discussions has been incredibly timely; in our current events, it is incredibly important to understand and analyze the ways in which content moderation can be manipulated to craft a specific narrative. As humans work behind the scenes to code and use algorithms that generate public content, I wonder how might this […]
A couple of years ago, a friend shared with me this article by former Google design ethicist, Tristan Harris. Although it is somewhat alarmist with regard to social media, as is his website advocating for more “human” tech design, the readings and discussion last week on platforms and content moderation that called into question the […]
In the paper Platforms are Not Intermediaries (2018), Gillespie carefully outlines the challenges in regulating online platforms that are both conduits of communication and content curators. He suggested a number of actions for balancing the power and freedom that social media platforms and internet service providers (ISPs) have with public obligations. These include an increase […]
For this post, I would like to focus on Mary Gray’s video on the hidden cost of ghost work in algorithms. As she points out, even with machine learning techniques, there are still humans who perform the new work upon which artificial intelligence algorithms rely. This takes on the form of data entry, data labeling, […]
Hi everyone, it was difficult for me to focus during this past week, so I only managed to write my reflection on the readings and discussion in a series of not very well-connected paragraphs. I apologize and thank you for your understanding. In the first session of the seminar, we discussed how content on the […]
“The style of moderation can vary from site to site, and from platform to platform, as rules around what UGC is allowed are often set at a site or platform level, and reflect that platform’s brand and reputation, its tolerance for risk, and the type of user engagement it wishes to attract.” Sarah T. Roberts, […]
I’m musing today about the way that Covid19 will ultimately affect the economy and how technology, and automation, will play a part in that. Part of what scares me about shutting down all “non-essential” business (though I completely agree that we should do this because human life > money) is that what is deemed “non-essential” […]