Blog post #9

 The Age of AI

The initial thought of AI, artificial intelligence, I as a student immediately think of my peers common use of looking for course work help from programs such as ChatGPT or Socratic. Many professors and institutions warn agains the use of outsourcing our work to such programs because it devalues the work and defeats the purpose of lessons, other professors argue that this is where the world is going and it is necessary that we learn how to work with these tools in order to be relevant in our future careers. 

While completing this assignment, I even utilized forms of AI (don't worry Dr. Smith I did not outsource my work!). Reviewing the YouTube video, I utilized the tool that shows where most users rewound the video, I asked my Amazon Alexa to connect to my IPhone which I played my study playlist (automatically created by AppleMusic), and I researched relevant articles on Google (where plenty of user based ads popped up). 

Although a violation to the Guide To Campus Life and infraction to academic integrity is concerning, it is far more concerning how the government and major corporations are using AI to enter into private aspects of community life. The world has fully emerged itself into the digital world. The internet has become a marketplace for every aspect of modern life. AI has revolutionized these abilities into a highly profitable data collection process. With every click, every view, and every action (or non- action) taken companies are able to track your trail and accumulate data about you. This valuable data can be sold in order predict your future actions. "You would be horrified if you knew what we know about you". - A Google Exec. As I previously mentioned, the data these companies have access to is within every aspect of our personal and private lives. 

A Business Model

Larry Page and Sergy Bryn created a platform, Google, that forever changed the world. Their catch-phrase to this model was "Don't Be Evil", they were referring to the way in which technology (specifically AI) could, and eventually would, be used. The two, unparalleled to the current stance of their company, were deeply opposed to advertising. They feared that this would forever distort the internet- it has. Eventually,

in order to stay afloat, Google did turn to utilize this technology in order to profit and continue offering a free search engine to the public. They begun selling the data that is collected with every search and trace left by users. In order to keep this most valuable, they kept it a secret until Google became a publicly traded company. The business model became: Provide free service (which at this point is a necessary service for day to day life) --> collect data from users (often without complete consent) --> sell valuable data. Soon other brands followed, including Mark Zuckerburg's Facebook which found itself in hot water in the Cambridge Analytical Scandal of 2018. This scandal brought to light the "phycological profiles", including political views and how they can be affected, that are collected and sold. This raised the alarms for many that democracy is in danger! Any billionaire with enough money to do so can take away our ability for free though through the purchase of our data and utilizing AI to target. 

Surveillance Capitalism 

Personally, I enjoy that my ads are relevant to my interests, but being aware of that this doesn't just apply to ads for things like clothing but incentivizing Americans to vote (or vote in a particular way) does cross

the lines of concern.  This is done through various tactics, including sponsored search: which matches consumers to advertisers based off of their uses and regular interests. "Surveillance capitalism claims the private, human experience as a free source of raw material fabricated into a prediction".  Many users assume they have some control over how much, and if, they are surveilled. Often, this is not true, and when it is true there is not "proper consent". This is due in part to lengthy "privacy" contracts signed when clicking "I consent to the terms and use of this app" (which we are all guilty of tapping yes without really reading). The users un-awareness to these abilities has allowed for surveillance capitalists to further take advantage of their data. 

Current State or Horror Movie

The data collected through our internet use is obviously a concern, but what about the data collected each

time we exit our homes (or while in home) and drive on the street or swipe a credit card? In China, the
state is always watching. They introduced cameras to monitor if people are jay walking, but they also use cameras and technology to track individuals based off of their face (or even how they walk). In Xinjiang, the Chinese government is using their surveillance technology to target Turkic Muslims, Uyghur. Their every move is tracked resulting in prosecuting their people and sending them to detention centers for "reeducation". 

How IJOP looks on the government official's side

The Chinese surveillance system is a major human rights violation! They have popularized the use of a system known as "Integrated Joint Operations Platform" (IJOP) which has an app that is used by government officials to track extreme amounts of personal information: ranging anywhere from religious affiliation to blood type. Each time a government official stops a person for "suspicious behavior", which could be exiting through the back door opposed to the front, they scan their ID and all their information pops up. They are then able to flag people for any reason and arrest them, under "the suspicion of disrupting the societal order". 

Technology like this is extremely concerning because although the United States has the legal infrastructure to protect against our government from implementing any similar use the mere fact that it exists and can be used by .anyone threatens the privacy of all people. As previously mentioned, much of our surveillance happens without our awareness to it. 

Blog Post #8

 Media Consolidation

Did you know 6 companies own 90% of media?

Majority of all media consumed is produced by the "Big 6" media conglomerates. These media giants own smaller "channels" and brands. For Example, TimeWarner is a parent company to CNN and HBO. This gives the illusion that you have a consumers chose when selected where to absorb media, especially news, when in actuality- there is not much diversity in media. This is known as media consolidation, or in economic terms the monopolization of media.

This is extremely concerning because it is major corporations and billion dollar companies controlling what and how we consume information, and we are not left with many options. Less options for where to

get your media from hurts the marketplace of ideas and leads to the information being shared is what is spoon fed by major corporations. 

This problem does not only occur in channel surfing or picking your favorite weather man but in all aspects of how you are absorbing media. These companies own and control all forms of media including television networks, streaming services, news papers, digital sites, major social media and even the devices you use to access all of these platforms. The idea in which a company is able to control all aspects of a supply chain is known as vertical integration. For example TimeWarner is the same brand as AT&T, therefore AT&T subscribers are using devices likely purchased by from the company, on a network run by the company, to view media produced by the company!

This only exacerbate the problem because these brands are so wealthy they are able to access different technology and produce a very different product, or simply just buy out competitors when necessary, not allowing for much competition. The idea of restricting competition in an industry is known as a monopoly. Many critics have called for strict anti-trust regulations, especially in the media industry to regulate the relationships and how these major companies interact with one another and smaller companies. 

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act calls for government regulation in industries in order to restrict activities that endanger competition in the marketplace. When analyzing media consolidation, it is important to
recognize media and what users are consuming; as a good. The way in which these media conglomerates are operating is in order to discourage or completely restrict competitors from producing a similar product. The lack of competition leads to lower quality and more expensive product. 

How to fight it and Why?

The great thing about a capitalist economy is the power is concentrated in the consumer! The bad thing about a capitalist economy, a lot of the time the consumer does not realize this! 

The media as a whole is right slanted (contrary to conspiracy theorists). This is because media is

controlled as a product, and therefore it is produced in order to ensure that it draws an audience. If the audience appeals to wanting a more diverse spread of media, for example viewing and subscribing to independent and local journalism, it will cause a reaction in the industry. 

Being aware of the problem is the first step in being able to fight it. Knowing the chain of how these conglomerates control different networks and newspapers (or sites) helps you to be aware of who is sharing information to you. On a similiar note, sharing what you are viewing and perusing what your peers are viewing is important. Communicating what is occurring in our world allows for a natural transfer of ideas. 

  

Blog Post #7

 Privacy in the Modern Age

Found image of my 16th B-Day easily found by Googling my name

Being born into the age of technology and the normalized use of social media has caused for my entire life (including every awkward phase) to be memorialized eternally on digital platforms (specifically my parent's Facebook pages but also local news sites and many others) for eternity. 

Maia Knight

The analogy of how each of our digital footprints are equivalent to a digital tattoo to our name is interesting. There is an entire genre on TikTok and YouTube for "family vlogging". This relates to the idea of the digital tattoo because as the genre grew audiences began to question the ethics of exposing children, who are not able to consent to participating in media. Would it be ethical to begin assigning "digital tattoos" to minors and children who are unaware of the immortal tattoo. For example a family vlogger popular on TikTok, Mia Knight (post backlash) opted to cover her children's faces and begin privatizing much of the information she used to freely share, in part due to dark sides of the internet utilizing her posts for nefarious purposes, inching toward child porngraghy.  On a far less serious note, if I were to scour the internet for "embarrassing photos" of anyone of my friends or colleagues it would take seconds for images to appear. Similarly, if I were interested in researching any person I could easily acquire tons of information including sports played in high school, where they attended school, family members, relationship status, job status, residency, and much more. This is all easily accessible information. 

In fact I was able to find my running times from 2009, I have not run track since 2009. 

Although it feels we share every aspect of our lives "willingly" on social media and other outlets there is a different concern of privacy when it comes to surveillance. The introduction of new technology, and even telephone companies have included surveillance technology in the creation of their servers, has begged the questions on where to draw the line. It can be argued that it is necessary for there to be some surveillance, for example monitoring terrorism threats but where there is the exception for one there is an exception for all. I was concerned with the idea of "license plate readers"(LRP), which can be attached to police cars in order to record the data of a license plate thus allowing the location stamping of a car, and upon further research I found the statement released by New York City (my home) which d
oes not provide any comfort. "LPR data may only be used for legitimate law enforcement purposes or other official business of the NYPD" There is not a specific guide on what is "other official business of the NYPD". Many police departments have been criticized for collecting and storing data recorded by the LRP, which often includes
not only where the vehicle was at a given time but who was in the vehicle, regardless if this vehicle was involved in malicious activities. 

Taylor Swift, Recent victim of DeepFake Porn brought attention to the Bill.

The government should be prioritizing our privacy. In the modern age of technology and the digital access to so much of a person's personal information it is completely necessary and important that the government adapt and apply laws to protect people. When the framers wrote the constitution and imagined for a future nation, there was no concern for things like "Revenge Porn" "Identity theft" or "Phishing" all of which are concerns of modern society. I feel that the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986) needs to be updated to account for such things and future concerns such as the normalization of things such as "Deep Fakes". Currently awaiting Congress is the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits Act of 2024, which is intended to pass legislation in regards to the distribution of images such as deepfakes that are being created without the subjects consent. 

 

Blog #6

Raise the Sound: Anti War Voices in Media

When researching anti-war throughout the media there is little coverage. On a Google search, where most Americans would go to find more information about a topic, there are outdated articles covering the first page and little to no legitimate information provided. This is abnormal for any research topic in the 21st century and can easily be seen a suspicious. 

The United States has a history of marketing war as a necessary and healthy event in our timeline, when it isn't really. Robert Jensen outlines this timeline in his article, published in 2001, there has since been many developments. He points directly at the United States unjust actions and behaviors that violate international law. It shields itself behind the guise of "self-defense". He compared the the bombing of hundreds of innocent civilians to the killing of American civilians in the 9-11 attacks. Jensen directly calls out the US stating that the claim of "war is the only way to deal with terrorists" is unsophisticated. 

Anti War. com covers a vast array of anti-war views that are not projected in the mainstream media coverage. The site breaks down the issues by nation and conflict. It is important to note that this site is run by a nonprofit institute. I found most interesting the page dedicated to the Garris v. FBI landmark case in which the FBI attempted to suppress the speech of antiwar.com author after he posted an FBI "watch list" to the site. The Court ordered that according to their First Amendment right and the Privacy Act of 1974 the FBI had to expunge the information collected about the authors from their records. 

Through previous understanding of war theories, I feel that the United States government is inclined to suppress antiwar speech because of concern of lack of unity when entering into war, whether it be legal and legitimate war or not. The two theories that came to mind were the Rally Around the Flag theory popularized by John Mueller and the Wag the Dog philosophy. 

The idea of rally around the flag is the sergeance of support and voter participation in the government when the nation is in crisis or war. This is not exactly the situation we find ourselves in when the US is suppressing anti-war speech but it is similar. The government cannot participate in war or "military actions" without the support, or at least the lack of wide spread protest. It is a basic political theory that a democracy is unable to operate without the support of its people and I feel this connects back because if anti-war voices were popularized the majority of the nation would disagree with its behaviors.

The Wag the Dog idea is similar in the sense that crisis brings people together and cause a gain in support.  It is originally based on a 1997 film. This relates itself to suppressed anti-war speech because it represents the positive effects crisis
coverage in 24 hour media has on support to the government- the stark opposite of what supporting anti-war speech would have.

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Blog Post #5

 Carrier Pigions 

Tess grabbed my attention the most during presentations while sharing information on the carrier pigeons and how they effected communication technology. I had never fully realized that carrier pigeons were so widely used. 

In Tess' presentation, I learned the significance of the "rat with wings" that as a native New Yorker have always seen as a useless and disgusting bird The process of how pigeons were once domesticated serves as an answer to why these so-called pests are so dependent on humans, and our crumbs. For centuries these birds were bred and trained, with food and care supplied for by humans, and tragically when our technology advanced beyond them- there was no need for them leading to them to be hunted for sport and kicked in the street. 

The use of pigeons to share messages dates back to early Egypt, where their talents were utilized to announced Olympic winners. This is interesting to imagine, now living in a time of smart phones and fast paced media- where Olympic winners are announced as they pass the finish line.

To fast forward to what I though was not only the most interesting bit of information shared in Tess' presentation but the entire day's presentations- was how the carrier pigeons aided in war efforts. Pigeons were used in later years because of not only share urgent messages but also in order to avoid the capture of highly sensitive information by enemies. Many even received military bravery awards such as the Dickin Medal, which recognizes the bravery of war animals. 

 Of these brave birds I was most taken with the story of Cher Ami, one of the 600 Army Signal Corps pigeon sent to France in World War One. Cher Ami is known for her heroic act of saving the 77th Division (the Lost Battalion). The 77th Division was split up from the other American troops and there was no radio signal to contact to let them know their position. Soon the Americans began bombing the area,
because of their belief of it only being left with German troops. The troop attempted contact through
carrier pigeons but the Germans stopped them by shooting the birds, and thus their message down. Flying alone was Cher Ami who was abled to deliver the message, although being shot twice and regaining flight. It read, "We are along the road parallel to 276.4. Our own artillery is dropping a barrage directly on us. For heaven's, sake stop it". This ultimately saved the lives of soldiers, though Cher Ami was permanently blinded and lost her leg eventually succumbing to his injuries. 

Finally, I learned that pigeons are still used to transport messages today! Although far less heroic, pigeons are notorious for smuggling drugs and other contraband to prisons. I enjoyed hearing that regardless of how technology has advanced beyond the need for carrier pigeons an Indian police force still maintains a flock of carrier pigeons "just in case". 

After this presentation and further research, I will be sure to thank a pigeon and share my crumbs the next time one greets me in the concrete streets of New York. 

Blog Post #4

 

The Founders

Larry Page and Sergy Bryn

Larry Page and Segy Bryn met while studying computer engineering at Stanford University in the 1990s. Neither begun their journey with the intention of revolutionizing technology. Bryn had an interest in data mining and most of all thought the most interesting data to mine was web pages. Page's advisor recommended he begin downloading the web. He noticed that no one was working on what links pages on

the web to each other. He then began his dissertation because he wanted to do "something fun and perhaps practical at the same time". At this point the internet was just a field of graphs and what seemed to be an endless terrain of uncharted territory. Until Bryn and Page, the internet was a series of web pages that were inaccessible to the average person without utilizing sites they were already familiar with or were shared through friends. He then began reversing the links and tracking down what links to the Stanford homepage. The two then organized their information to rank those links in an order "you'd expect to see them". They took the information and rank them based on importance. 

As said earlier, the creators of Google never imagined the influence their creation would have on the World. When asked what their mission was, although it began as a PhD dissertation, it was "to make the world's information accessible and useful". With the introduction of Google the pair made this mission possible now offering answers, research, and anything else the mind could imagine with billions of documents seconds. 

The pair introduced "BackRub" in 1996 while still students at Stanford University. The site was named for its method of directing users through "backlink data". In August of 1998, Andy Bechtolsheim invested $100,000 and the new team renamed "BackRub" to Google Inc. The name Google came from the mathematical term, "googol", meaning one followed by 100 zeros. This represents the seemingly endless access to knowledge available. The company rapidly grew and became a household name, one in which much of the world cannot imagine what life was like before it!

                                        Revolutionizing the World as it was Known

Before Google, information sharing and research was a time consuming task, now with Google we are able to access endless information on any topic within seconds (or less). Google continues to make advancements in the tech world offering a array of products such as: "Maps", "Drive", "Docs/ Slides", "YouTube" and as many students post pandemic are familiar with "Classroom" and "Meet". These products are able to shrink the distance of thought and ideas through achieving the teams goal of making the world's information accessible. When asked where they see their prized idea going in future years (during a 2000) interview, the team stated their interest in how Artificial Intelligence will help advance Google. It is now used in many of their products including Maps and Translate but also overall in their sponsored search that helps bring consumers to sites that offer what they are looking for. 

    Google's Proud Parents

In 2019, Larry Page and Sergy Bryn left Alphabet, the company they formed to oversee Google (now valued at over a trillion dollars) and its products. The two are compared to proud parents that felt it was time for their "child" Google be left in new hands to continue advancing. The two left on the idea that they want to further explore all that technology can do for the world and to "solve other world problems".