Beta Futures

A blog about social media, datafication and development
Beta Futures

Learning new or strengthening the old? The role of AI and learning algorithms in formulation of stereotypes through social media

Many tend to view social media as a way to expand their understanding of the world and its phenomena – whether those were completely new or something that the user is already familiar with. In other words, social media enables exploring new information and content on topics that one would …

Is Facebook prioritising profit over peace?

Last month, the Wall Street Journal published a series of articles drawn from thousands of pages of leaked internal Facebook documents, labelled the Facebook Files, that purportedly show the ways in which the company prioritises profit over public good. Then, last Sunday (2 October), Frances Haugen, a former Facebook data …

Globalization and ICT are everywhere – but are they for everyone?

As Anthony Giddens points out in his book Runaway World (1999), globalization is continuously changing our lives. This includes not only our culture, but also our physical environment. Although globalization as a phenomenon is not entirely new, there are some aspects of it, such as the birth of information technology …

‘Slacktivism’: hole-in-one or assist and miss?

Critics call online activists “lazy,” others praise the online forum as an effective message-carrier. But can we really draw one line for how online activism is operated globally? And can an increasingly digitally-first society force activism upon its participants to the point where it no longer becomes effective? Let’s talk …

The promise and peril of social media regulation at a global level

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the rise of globalisation has made promises of prosperity, and the advent of the Internet provided hope for democratisation on a global scale. But while globalisation has allowed much of the Global North to enjoy increased prosperity, it has also left many behind …