There’s no question that social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube can rapidly amplify and circulate hate speech and extremist content. Solutions to this problem are murky, as seen in debates over topics such as cancel culture, free speech, and censorship. In this essay, Jacob Mchangama, a Danish writer and lawyer, argues that an …
Category: How is Technology Changing Us?
The future of money: Lana Swartz on digital currency and the benefits of cash
Don’t have cash? No problem. The number of places where you can use cashless transactions has multiplied in recent years, from digital wallets to contactless payments on public transit. For all the convenience of digital currency, however, there are significant downsides to eschewing cash, according to Lana Swartz, an assistant professor of media studies. Swartz …
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A safety net with many holes: Nora Kenworthy and Ken Igra on the limitations of crowdfunding
Organizations like GoFundMe claim to tap into the power of social networks: those in need of financial assistance post on their social media sites and gather donations from people far beyond their immediate circle of family and friends. Yet according to researchers Nora Kenworthy and Ken Igra, crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe “have been largely unsuccessful …
Dispatch from the war zone: Kyle Chayka on the effects of using social media to document war
Social media platforms are another front in 21st century warfare, and people have increasingly turned to them to narrate and share their personal war experiences. From Syria to Ukraine, images and videos circulated on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok have chronicled the human impact of conflict in real time. In this essay, Kyle Chayka analyzes …
Class in the metaverse: Nir Eisikovits on the challenges of building virtual reality universities
Virtual reality, widely used in gaming, is now being adapted for a range of purposes, including medicine, therapy, and sports. But could virtual reality work for higher education? In this essay, Nir Eisikovits, an associate professor of ethics at University of Massachusetts-Boston, explores the ethical and social challenges of virtual reality. He explains what is …
Billionaires in space: Lucianne Walkowicz on making space exploration more accessible
In the summer of 2021, three billionaires – Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Jared Isaacson – made history as they blasted off into space on their own privately funded spaceflights. In her essay, astronomer Lucianne Walkowicz analyzes the implications of this new chapter in space exploration. Walkowicz suggests these billionaire-funded launches reflect current inequities here …
An epidemic of teenage loneliness: Jonathan Haidt and Jean M. Twenge on the mental health impact of smartphones on Gen Z
There’s been a shift in how teenagers hang out, and you can hear it: the chatter that used to buzz through a high school cafeteria has often morphed into silent scrolling on smartphone screens, punctuated by tiny pings as teens message each other through their social media apps. The isolation many teenagers have experienced during …
Relying on robots to care for us: Anna Romina Guevarra on the consequences of automating the work of caregivers
Thanks to rapid advances in artificial intelligence, what used to be sci-fi fantasy is now reality: robots can now teach, provide therapy, and administer care in hospitals and other medical facilities. But as Anna Romina Guevarra, associate professor and director of Global Asian Studies at University of Illinois Chicago, asks, should they? In her August …
A case for critical media literacy: Maytha Alhassen and Zaheer Ali on how viral misinformation could affect future historians
Some people might argue that what we do online is our own personal business. Historians Maytha Alhassen and Zaheer Ali, however, contend that online spaces are instead part of our “public life.” In this May 19, 2021 essay, Alhassen and Ali argue that it is our “civic duty” to be critical about what we consume …
All alone in our screens: Jenna Wortham on the paradox of wellness apps
As people deal with the persistent stressors of pandemic life, they are increasingly turning to mindfulness apps like Calm and Headspace to soothe their anxieties. Corporate wellness programs have jumped on the bandwagon, sponsoring these apps as a way to promote well-being for their employees, whose lives have suddenly moved almost completely online. In this …
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