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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
reflective
medium-paced
This was a really interesting book. So many great ideas inspiring change
informative
reflective
I appreciate this book a lot - the only reason the rating isn’t higher is that it felt a little bit boring to listen to?? Just finished it so I can’t pinpoint why. It might be because some of this just felt obvious - I would say a lot of folks are aware of how invasive and pervasive algorithms are in our daily lives. I appreciated that he spells a lot of this out, even sharing his own self-awareness of how his tastes are shaped by algorithms. This book is great to get folks reflecting on our (media) consumption habits, as well as getting healthily concerned about our privacy rights on social media apps and other platforms. Smth I thought was interesting is how different platforms use tracking to either provide hyper-specific recommendations vs others like Netflix which tailor the same material to different types of users. I will say I enjoyed his critique on how “curation” has become watered down as a term. Idk, I mean it gave me some new ideas for how to try and diversify my intake of culture, how to slow down and be mindful about the attention I give to art, movies, tv, and how I choose to connect with my friends and fam. I think it just needed some more oomph - not sure what or how exactly lol.
challenging
reflective
A decent exploration of the subtle and not-so-subtle ways that algorithms manipulate individuals and cultural trends in the US and abroad.
A lot of the book is devoted to calling out unoriginal, shallow creations inspired by social media or profit-squeezing analytics: endless Marvel movies, soulless coffee shops, mediocre Book Tok reads, etc. Ironically, there are no groundbreaking observations there.
A lot of the book is devoted to calling out unoriginal, shallow creations inspired by social media or profit-squeezing analytics: endless Marvel movies, soulless coffee shops, mediocre Book Tok reads, etc. Ironically, there are no groundbreaking observations there.
However, it has some fascinating details about how cleverly designed big tech’s algos can be. Netflix will show different thumbnails based on user content preferences. For the show Outer Banks, romcom fans see main characters about to kiss, while sports fans see surfing.
Some social media algos are deeply flawed from a user experience perspective. I don’t think the author does a great of explaining this, however, so I’ll add some my own analysis. Twitter and Facebook (and, as of a few years ago, YouTube) don’t have dislike functions, so absurd hot takes, rage bait, and bots are free to run rampant. Reddit has downvotes, so bots are usually hidden. Controversial content is buried by default, but it’s available in a separate tab if you’re curious about it. Twitter’s bot engagement led to a controversy that nearly resulted in Elon pulling out of the deal to buy it. For Facebook and other platforms, businesses are buying ads based on inflated impressions figures. Is there an influencer bubble if a large portion of their metrics are fake?
Chayka’s solutions for big tech’s adverse impacts on society are somewhat questionable. The FTC/antitrust angle is far easier said than done; their brilliant idea for regulating Google is spinning off the search business. I think the best path forward is for parents to ensure their children don’t spend their critical years of socialization online. This could be easily accomplished with firewalls or screen time restrictions. Sure, at first children feel excluded from their friends’ online hangouts, but collective action can gradually shift the norm to in-person interaction.
I haven't been on tiktok since the "ban" over a month ago and honestly, I don't think I'm going back.
I'm also making a conscious effort to unplug and be aware of the ways that algorithms distort my experience online. Outrage clickbait isn't healthy for anyone
I'm also making a conscious effort to unplug and be aware of the ways that algorithms distort my experience online. Outrage clickbait isn't healthy for anyone
informative
slow-paced
This book is fine at best. There were times where the author starts to get into something that hooks me and then just as quickly he changes topics - ironic considering some of the critiques presented in the story. It felt arrogant, but I worried at times that the parts where I was feeling talked down to were actually views the author held - it can’t truly be so impossible or laborious to decline cookies on a website. I hoped for a more sociological look at the algorithm and how to shake its hold on society but I didn’t feel like I really got that.
I also feel like it didn’t take into account some of the layers that go into the dangers of the algorithm and internet as a whole. A solid example of this - as someone maybe just a couple of years younger than the author, it seems like a stretch to blame the suicide of a teen entirely on the algorithm when we grew up in an era where parents monitored our internet use more heavily and we live in a society that generally doesn’t accept vocalizing mental health struggles.
While I don’t think any of the content is necessarily inflammatory or harmful, it just didn’t feel like it added much to the conversation surrounding the internet and social media algorithms.
I also feel like it didn’t take into account some of the layers that go into the dangers of the algorithm and internet as a whole. A solid example of this - as someone maybe just a couple of years younger than the author, it seems like a stretch to blame the suicide of a teen entirely on the algorithm when we grew up in an era where parents monitored our internet use more heavily and we live in a society that generally doesn’t accept vocalizing mental health struggles.
While I don’t think any of the content is necessarily inflammatory or harmful, it just didn’t feel like it added much to the conversation surrounding the internet and social media algorithms.
informative
reflective
fast-paced
informative
medium-paced
a few keen observations but majority stunk of those dudes who still use flip phones and/or don’t get likes on their posts. strongly disliked his writing style. long winded, contradictory, lacks perspective imo