The Relevance of Algorithms

The Relevance of Algorithms

presented by Tarleton Gillespie

How would we begin to look at the pro­duc­tion of the algo­rith­mic? Not the pro­duc­tion of algo­rithms, but the pro­duc­tion of the algo­rith­mic as a jus­ti­fi­able, legit­i­mate mech­a­nism for knowl­edge pro­duc­tion. Where is that being estab­lished and how do we exam­ine it?

Response to Tarleton Gillespie’s The Relevance of Algorithms”

presented by Martha Poon

It seems to me that to con­front algo­rithms on their own terms, we may have to mod­i­fy our pre­oc­cu­pa­tion with the pol­i­tics of knowl­edge and take up an inter­est in the pol­i­tics of logis­ti­cal engineering.

Can an Algorithm Be Agonistic? Ten Scenes about Living in Calculated Publics

presented by Kate Crawford

This is why it mat­ters whether algo­rithms can be ago­nist, giv­en their roles in gov­er­nance. When the log­ic of algo­rithms is under­stood as auto­crat­ic, we’re going to feel pow­er­less and pan­icked because we can’t pos­si­bly inter­vene. If we assume that they’re delib­er­ate­ly demo­c­ra­t­ic, we’ll assume an Internet of equal agents, ratio­nal debate, and emerg­ing con­sen­sus posi­tions, which prob­a­bly does­n’t sound like the Internet that many of us actu­al­ly recognize.