Weizenbaum Library (Weizenbaum Institute)
Not a member yet
864 research outputs found
Sort by
Feminist Identity and Online Activism in Four Countries From 2019 to 2023
Full text linkThe COVID-19 pandemic heightened burdens on caregivers, but also the visibility of caregiving inequalities. These grievances may activate a feminist identity which in turn leads to greater civic and political participation. During a pandemic, online forms of participation are particularly attractive as they require less effort than offline forms of participation and pose less health risks compared to collective forms of offline activism. Using survey data from four countries (Canada, France, the United States, and the United Kingdom) collected in 2019 (prior to the pandemic), 2021 (during the pandemic), and 2023 (post-pandemic), we examine the relationship between self-identifying as a feminist and signing online petitions ( n = 18,362). Our multivariate analyses show that having a feminist identity is positively related to signing online petitions. We consider the differential effects of this identity on participation for men, women, non-binary people; caregivers versus non-caregivers; and respondents in different countries with varying levels of restrictions due to the pandemic. A feminist identity is more important for mobilizing caregivers than non-caregivers, whether or not the caregiver is a man or a woman. While grievance theory suggests differential effects by country and time period, we find a consistent role of feminist identity in predicting the signing of online petitions across time and across countries. These findings offer insights into how different groups in varying contexts are mobilized to participate.This work was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
(SSHRC) Insight Grant (435-2019-04-94)
Generative AI and the Ethical Risks Associated with Human-Computer Symbiosis
Full text linkThis article critically examines digital technology through the lens of existential philosophy concerned with human-technology interaction. One such philosophy is human-technology symbiosis (or man-computer symbiosis, in J.C.R. Licklider’s terminology). A similar view appears in Douglas Engelbart’s work on the augmentation of human intelligence. These ideas form the framework for this paper’s analysis. The early computing scientists considered technical progress with deep care for the future of human creativity and human intelligence. They set a course for a new future of human-computer interaction that would take the form of a partnership or a team. Their values continue to play powerfully into digital culture today. The ethical concerns for cybernetics voiced by Norbert Wiener further enrich the critical positioning in this paper. Using this theoretical framework, the analysis will show that generative artificial intelligence is philosophically congruent with the idea of symbiotic human-technology interaction. Microsoft’s Copilot will serve as a concrete illustration. However, certain aspects of human interactions with generative artificial intelligence may pose ethical concerns, particularly related to personal and social responsibility, the nature of knowledge, and the value placed on the human element. This renews the importance of rigorous governance systems and education.The Weizenbaum Institute is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF
Weizenbaum Panel’s Literature Digest: July 2024
Full text linkDer Literatur Digest ist eine monatlich erscheinende Zusammenstellung des aktuellen Forschungsstandes zu Themen an der Schnittstelle zwischen Digitalisierung und Politik. Er präsentiert die neuesten Erkenntnisse zu Fragen der politischen Partizipation und guter Bürgerschaft in Zeiten der Digitalisierung.The Literature Digest is a monthly compilation of the current state of research on topics at the nexus of digitalization and politics. It presents the latest findings on issues of political participation and good citizenship in times of digitalization
The Impact of COVID-19 on California’s Plans for Caring for its Aging Population. Technology Adoption and Employment
No full textOlder adults have traditionally been the age cohort most resistant to the adoption of technology, making aging in place difficult and frequently expensive. But recent advances in technology – and those just on the horizon – have the potential to transform the ability to age in place by making senior healthcare both safer and more connected. Such technology can enable healthcare professionals to monitor their charges in real time, respond quickly to healthcare emergencies, make healthcare consultations safer and less onerous for both patients and healthcare workers, assist elders with physical ther- apy, connect older adults to family and friends, and provide entertainment and learning opportunities for seniors. It is now even possible for older adults in rural areas to receive remote surgery from world class surgeons. The arrival of COVID-19 forced older adults into isolation, severely limiting contact with healthcare providers, family and friends. But COVID-19 also accelerated the adoption of many of the trends already extant, incentivizing older adults and healthcare providers to adopt new technologies much more rapidly than ever before. The WelbeHealth Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) in California’s Central Valley, may provide a model of flexible, responsive and adaptive care
Purple Code – With Aida Eyvazzadeh and Sakine M. Bozorg
No full textAida Eyvazzadeh and Sakine M. Bozorg are former content moderators in Berlin who worked for a global social media platform. The are both from Iran and in this episode, they talk about why and how migrant workers in Germany constitute as a crucial labor supply to the global platform economy. They explain what content moderation is, how it is labor intensive work and requires several skills. Instead of being valued, content moderators face high control on their work and even repression, a kind of corporate authoritarianism that reminds them of the authoritarian regime in Iran. They go on to recount their experiences of challenging these power asymmetries through the German institutional resources and trade unions, and the difficulties they have faced in doing so. Talking about these experiences, they suggest ways for unions to reflect and make certain changes. Beyond these institutions, they also find hope in networking with different communities in Berlin and internationally for sharing resources and finding possibilities to organize. Aida currently works in the civil society sector and Sakine is an independent researcher and essayist. She is also part of the Data Workers Inquiry project (https://data-workers.org/) that is supported by the Distributed AI Research Institute and the Weizenbaum Institute and is launching on the 8th of July this year
Journalismus und Journalismusforschung: Nein, das Ende ist nicht nahe – Eine Antwort auf Hektor Haarkötter
Full text linkHektor Haarkötters Text ist ein Abgesang auf den Online-Journalismus – und obendrein auf die Forschung, die ihm gewidmet ist. Sein pointiertes Urteil: Bevor die Geschichte des Online-Journalismus erzählt worden ist, ist er schon wieder Geschichte. Dass der Journalismus in der Krise steckt, ist keine Neuigkeit, sondern wird seit mehr als zwei Jahrzehnten unentwegt diskutiert und erforscht. Hektor Haarkötter formuliert das, woran in der Tendenz wohl niemand zweifelt, mit besonderer Drastik. Den Text durchzieht eine Todesmetaphorik („Siechtum und Tod“, „Friedhof“, „Finsternis“, „Sargnägel“, „Todeskampf“, „RIP“; Büscher 1996). Während andere nach Auswegen aus der Krise suchen, ist für ihn das Ende des Online-Journalismus besiegelt. Gegen diese Eindeutigkeit und Unausweichlichkeit möchte ich hier argumentieren, weil sie weder dem Forschungsstand entspricht, noch die Lage völlig aussichtlos ist. Ich verstehe Haarkötters Text als provokanten Appell an Kommunikationswissenschaft und Journalismus, sich die Lage schonungslos zu vergegenwärtigen, denn es steht in der Tat viel auf dem Spiel: die Zukunft der liberalen Demokratie (Neuberger 2022a), ebenso die Wissenschaftsfreiheit
TechDo Digest 2x3: October 2024
Full text linkThe TechDo Digest is the literature overview of the research group "Technology, Power and Domination" at the Weizenbaum Institute. Every two to three months, the group curates a list of relevant new publications within their field, focussing on analyses of structures of power and domination in digitalized societies, changes to democratic processes, regulation of and through technology, and the contestation of digital technologies. This edition features articles that appeared between June and September 2024.The Weizenbaum Institute is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF
Unlocking AI’s Potential: Human Collaboration as the Catalyst
Full text linkRapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have fueled high expectations for the technology’s potential to fundamentally transform our economy and society through automation. However, given the inscrutability and, sometimes, susceptibility to error of AI systems, we argue that the focus should shift towards fostering effective human-AI collaboration rather than pursuing automation alone. In this context, system decisions must be made available to decision-makers in an explainable and understandable manner, as further required by the EU’s recently passed AI Act. Research shows that there is potential for humans to learn from explainable AI systems and improve their own performance over time. Meanwhile, in addition to enabling humans to benefit from working with AI systems on various everyday tasks, such collaboration ensures the safe and reliable use of AI systems, especially in high-risk areas such as medicine, where human oversight remains paramount.This publication has been funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research of Germany (BMBF) (grant no.: 16DII121, 16DII122, 16DII123, 16DII124, 16DII125, 16DII126, 16DII127, 16DII128 – “Deutsches Internet-Institut”)
Right Topic, Right Source? Source Diversity and Balance in Right-Wing Alternative News Content Across Topics
Full text linkThis article investigates how the hybrid nature of right-wing alternative news media striving for journalistic legitimacy and partisan credibility plays out on source and topical diversity and balance in article content. The article draws on a sample of 1000 randomly selected articles published by 20 right-wing alternative online news media from six countries (the US, the UK, Germany, Austria, Denmark, and Sweden) from March 2019 to February 2020 (i.e., in “routine” pre-COVID-19 times). The results show that most of the alternative media outlets in the sample cover relatively broad topical spectra. More specifically, US and UK media primarily focus on politics and policy issues, whereas Scandinavian media are more heavily geared toward societal issues and crime coverage. Overall, right-wing alternative news content is characterized by a variety of partisan and non-partisan sources. However, core partisan topic areas, such as politics and mass media, are more likely to include partisan and especially right-wing sources. Often, with respect to these topics, right-wing sources are evaluated positively, and left-wing sources are evaluated negatively. Finally, right-wing and non-right-wing sources often appear in separate articles rather than in direct confrontation.This work was supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, [grant numbers 16DII125 and 16DII135] and the Carlsberg Foundation [grant number CF20-0247]
Drifting Away from the Mainstream: Media Attention and the Politics of Hyperpartisan News Websites
Full text linkPopulism has recently enjoyed success in Europe, the US, and beyond. Populist leaders and their supporters have accused “mainstream” media of being part of a “corrupt” elite that misrepresents the will of the virtuous “people.” Distrust of the media has also prompted the rejection of traditional media sources for political information and given prominence to alternative and hyperpartisan sources such as Breitbart. However, limited research exists concerning who consumes hyperpartisan media, how the websites of hyperpartisan media are interconnected, and what content is presented in hyperpartisan news. By combining cross-national surveys with large-scale digital trace datasets of website visits, this paper demonstrates the link between populist party support and hyperpartisan media visits. It also identifies influential sources of hyperpartisan news by analyzing the audience similarity networks of these websites and reveals country-level variations in hyperpartisan news and the dominance of US politics among the identified hyperpartisan news topics.The Weizenbaum Institute is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF