Weekly

Kinzen's Weekly Wrap - February 26, 2021

Something that we regularly discuss in Kinzen is how misinformation swirls. Like wind in a football stadium, it whooshes around and is simultaneously both global and local. Live the virus, misinformation knows no borders. 

We regularly see a theme emerging in Germany and pretty quickly it is copied and edited for the locals in Dublin; a narrative is created in the US and we see the ripple effects in Tokyo. Finely tuned, these ideas are the product of A/B testing a lie. The Butterfly Effect of Disinformation.

That’s the subject of an article I’ve just written for TheJournal.ie. It’s about how disinformation campaigns are transnational, how they are packaged for local audiences for maximum impact, and how we should all be aware that when we come across this stuff, it likely originated elsewhere. A truly postmodern example of remixing and sampling.

Check it out here.

Editor’s Pick: Book Slot

This week I’ve been reading Race After Technology by Ruha Benjamin. Touching on similar themes to the last Weekly Wrap, Benjamin convincingly argues that when technology solutions are posed as objective or scientific, they often reinforce racism. She calls it the New Jim Code. She presents a number of case studies to show that, "Tech fixes often hide, speed up, and even deepen discrimination, while appearing to be neutral or benevolent when compared to the racism of a previous era." 

For anyone who wants to build tech solutions for society’s woes, this book is a must. 

Recommended Articles: From the Kinzen Slack channels

Axios. How memes became a major vehicle for misinformation

Most memes are harmless and hilarious. But alas there is a dark side. I spoke to Sara Fischer and Alison Snyder for this article about how memes are weaponised in disinformation campaigns. It’s an extraordinarily difficult challenge for researchers, journalists and platforms. And memes continue to go viral all the time. 

The Markup. Can Auditing Eliminate Bias from Algorithms? 

If we want to prevent bias in algorithms, maybe they need to be opened up to auditors. As The Markup reports here, algorithmic auditing is an undefined field, with no industry standards or regulations. There could be unintended consequences too. But like the lessons from the Benjamin book, this is well worth a read if you’re thinking about solutions to complicated problems in the modern world. 

Reuters. From Clubhouse to Twitter Spaces, social media grapples with live audio moderation

We’re in a fascinating moment with audio. And it’s also a fascinating challenge for Trust and Safety teams who want to protect their communities from harmful threats. Audio is tricky - transcription costs are high, and even then the specific format of audio might require a different sort of investigation than usual. (Something Kinzen is working on.)

The New York Times. Behind the Nashville Bombing, a Conspiracy Theorist Stewing About the Government

"Though Mr. Warner’s motive remains shrouded in mystery, false information and outlandish tales had poisoned his mind, apparently driving him to spectacular violence."

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