[OPLIN 4cast] OPLIN 4Cast #749: The impact of algorithms grows, but is that a good thing?

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OPLIN 4Cast #749: The impact of algorithms grows, but is that a good thing?
May 5th, 2021

[image: Digital people and associated terms] In the past several months, I
have become somewhat addicted to scrolling through TikTok. This is no
accident; the algorithm seems to have grasped immediately what sort of
content I like. So much so that it seems eerily psychic in understanding my
preferences with a proficiency I've not seen on any other social media
platform.

However, this same algorithm can punish content creators by making their
content difficult to discover. TikTok is also gaining a reputation for
removing content for indiscernible reasons. A fair number of creators have
simply discovered that their content has been removed, under the banner of
having somehow violated "community standards"--even when that content is
what most people would consider inoffensive. Clearly, the TikTok algorithm
is powerful, but has a long way to go to make it truly transparent...or
even accurate. Algorithms are beginning to control our lives in more ways
than we might know.

   -
   - Researchers Warn: AI Algorithms Can Influence People’s Voting and
   Dating Decisions
   <https://scitechdaily.com/researchers-warn-ai-algorithms-can-influence-peoples-voting-and-dating-decisions/>
   [SciTech Daily] "Overall, the experiments showed that the algorithms had a
   significant influence on participants’ decisions of whom to vote for or
   message. For political decisions, explicit manipulation significantly
   influenced decisions, while covert manipulation was not effective. The
   opposite effect was seen for dating decisions."
   - Can Algorithms Run Your Entire Business?
   <https://www.cdotrends.com/story/15541/can-algorithms-run-your-entire-business?refresh=auto>
   [CDO Trends] "But now, the future is looking very different. COVID-19 made
   established business models redundant. We became more reliant on
   data-driven algorithms to keep us in touch with our business, our
   customers, and even our competitors. As bots and AI become part of the new
   business normal, and as data science takes mega leaps forward, algorithms
   are about to shape the business landscape."
   - When it comes to stopping misinformation, it’s not the speech. It’s
   the algorithms
   <https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-tech/when-it-comes-to-stopping-misinformation-its-not-the-speech-its-the-algorithms/>
   [Marketplace] "When the right complains about shadow banning, this is
   actually what they’re talking about. They’re talking about when content
   that they like gets limited in the algorithm. And there’s a big argument to
   be made that free speech is the right to say something. Nowhere in the
   Constitution does it give you a right to be amplified by a private company."
   - How social media recommendation algorithms help spread hate
   <https://www.engadget.com/how-social-media-recommendation-algorithms-help-spread-online-hate-180032029.html>
   [Engadget] "“Social media platforms use algorithms that shape what billions
   of people read, watch and think every day, but we know very little about
   how these systems operate and how they’re affecting our society," Sen.
   Chris Coons (D-Del.) told *POLITICO*
   <https://www.politico.com/news/2021/04/23/facebook-youtube-twitter-testify-senate-484456>
ahead
   of the hearing. "Increasingly, we’re hearing that these algorithms are
   amplifying misinformation, feeding political polarization and making us
   more distracted and isolated.”"

*From the Ohio Web Library <http://ohioweblibrary.org>:*

   - TIKTOK: RECOMMENDATION ALGORITHMS
   <https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=148605680&site=ehost-live>.
   (Ohlheiser, A. (2021). Tiktok: Recommendation Algorithms. *MIT
   Technology Review*, *124*(2), 54–53.)
   - Ethics of Algorithms: Overview.
   <https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pwh&AN=149778866&site=ehost-live>
   (Crelin, J. (2021). Ethics of Algorithms: Overview. *Points of View:
   Ethics of Algorithms*, 1–3.)
   - Counterpoint: Regulation Must Adapt to Address Bias in Algorithms.
   <https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.oplin.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pwh&AN=149778868&site=ehost-live>(Counterpoint:
   Regulation Must Adapt to Address Bias in Algorithms. (2021). *Points of
   View: Ethics of Algorithms*, 1–2.)

------------------------------
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