The Tech Policy Press Podcast

The 13th installment of the Freedom on the Net report from Freedom House finds that "while advances in artificial intelligence offer benefits for society, they have also been used to increase the scale and efficiency of digital repression." Justin Hendrix spoke with two of the report's authors- Allie Funk and Kian Vesteinsson about their findings, which unfortunately do not represent a change of trajectory from prior years.

The European Union is nearing the passing of sweeping AI regulation, focusing on areas such as product safety and risk-based regulations. The need for legal protections and representation for individuals affected by AI decisions is also discussed. The impact of industry lobbying on the legislation and Open AI's concerns about being designated a high risk system are explored. The UK's approach to AI safety and upcoming negotiation are also addressed.

In Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech, Los Angeles Times technology columnist Brian Merchant has written a new history of perhaps one of the most famous movements for worker rights and power in the face of automation. The book sets the record straight on the Luddites, and unpacks what today’s workers can learn from them. 

The ubiquity of cameras in our phones and our environment, coupled with massive social media networks that can share images and video in an instant, means we see often graphic and disturbing images with great frequency. How are people processing such material? And how is it different for people working in newsrooms, social media companies, and human rights and social justice organizations? What protections might be put in place to protect people from vicarious trauma and other harms, and what is the ultimate benefit of doing this work?In their new book, Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in Our Online Lives, University of California Berkeley scholars Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros set out to answer those questions.

In 2019, journalist Kashmir Hill had just joined The New York Times when she got a tip about the existence of a company called Clearview AI that claimed it could identify almost anyone with a photo. But the company was hard to contact, and people who knew about it didn’t want to talk. Hill resorted to old fashioned shoe-leather reporting, trying to track down the company and its executives. By January of 2020, the Times was ready to report what she had learned in a piece titled “The Secretive Company That Might End Privacy as We Know It.” Three years later, Hill has published a book that tells the story of Clearview AI, but with the benefit of a great deal more reporting and study on the social, political, and technological forces behind it. It's called Your Face Belongs to Us: A Secretive Startup's Quest to End Privacy As We Know It, just out from Penguin Random House.

This podcast explores the scale and influence of technology platforms, including the legal complexities of ride-hailing platforms in Colombia and the use of technology by immigrant communities. It also delves into the challenges of addressing data privacy and child protection in Big Tech, as well as the difficulties in implementing privacy laws in the United States.

Dr. Shelby Grossman discusses AI's ability to write persuasive propaganda. Dr. Kirsty Park and Steph Amunke highlight the shortcomings of the initial disinformation code of practice and the new strengthened code. The assessment of reporting requirements reveals that most platforms scored below adequate. The transition to a code of conduct in relation to the Digital Services Act is discussed. Addressing disinformation challenges and solutions, with the importance of regulating procedures and intervening at the economic and ecosystem level.

Paul Gowder, Professor of Law and Associate Dean of Research and Intellectual Life at Northwestern University's Pritzker School of Law, discusses the governance problem of social media platforms and argues for worldwide direct democratic institutions. Topics covered include reimagining the future of social media platforms, academic background and the creation of the oversight board, harmful effects of surveillance capitalism, advantages and concerns of centralization and decentralization, and addressing the problem of Donald Trump and the Great Deplatforming.

Researchers Alina Leidinger and Richard Rogers discuss their study on search engine auto complete perpetuating stereotypes. The speakers explore the challenges of moderating gender stereotypes and the impact of search engine suggestions on people's thoughts and behavior. They also delve into the incorporation of AI terminology in journalism, clarifying terms in robotics and AI, and the use of language models and AI in journalism. Associated Press' new language guidance for covering AI is highlighted.

Cornell researchers Houston Claure and Malte Jung discuss the social consequences of 'machine allocation behavior' and how humans feel and behave differently when machines make decisions on resource allocation. Author Tom Kemp talks about his concerns on data collection and privacy in Silicon Valley, his involvement in privacy advocacy, and proposing a bill for better regulation of data brokers in California. The podcast also covers the lack of regulation on tech companies' information collection, solutions for addressing big tech dominance, and the importance of education and advocacy.