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Zine: Question Authority (Accessible): Algorithms

How to radicalize your research and amplify marginalized scholars.

Algorithms

Algorithms are ubiquitous in our lives, they’re everywhere and most of us are interacting with them daily through the use of Google and social media.

The purpose of an algorithm is to bring you the best and most relevant webpages as quickly as possible. When you click on a webpage from the results list, this becomes part of your profile for future web searches. Some may say, no big deal, I wanted to buy those shoes Instagram suggested anyways. However, we must also acknowledge that everyone has biases and the creators of algorithms are no exception. Their biases are reflected in the algorithms they create.

Let’s think about a few concerns:

  • Algorithms are programmed for profit – not to make your life easier. Who actually benefits from the algorithms? The people who collect and use your data.
  • Algorithms reflect the biases of the programmers and often use incomplete data. Algorithms are skilled in the art of prediction – one search leads to a flood of recommendations and therefore becomes part of your data profile. Does that one search define you from now until forever?
  • Algorithms deepen divides. Filter bubbles occur where you are fed ideas based off previous searches thus filtering out broader or more wide-spread ideas. Have you clicked on a link to another website and then another and then another? Would you have gotten there on your own without the suggestion?

I encourage everyone to read Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble’s book, Algorithms of Oppression to see how algorithms are biased against minoritized populations. Prior to Dr. Noble’s book being published, an image search of “Black girls” retrieved mostly pornographic images. Why? Why is it the same for “Asian girls” but not “White girls”? This book is a must read for anyone using the internet.