Take a photo of a barcode or cover
alramsthel 's review for:
Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture
by Kyle Chayka
i have many thoughts but i’ll start by saying this is a 2.5 read rounded up.
i can’t say i bought into this fully. his whole thing is like “algorithms are ruining any kind of culture and dulling peoples’ unique taste and it’s the worst thing that’s happening” but like…there’s always been a boring mainstream, and there’s been/going to be fringe culture and pushback against that mainstream culture lmao. regardless of 50 years ago to now, that hasn’t changed. ppl have always been told what they should like (which he acknowledges!! curators and tastemakers, which historically have been white straight cis men so how is that something to mourn??). people who had the time and energy to really dig in and refine their niche tastes can thank their privilege for giving them the free time and resources to do so while everyone else was and is still just trying to survive under capitalism. and honestly i think the diversity of what we are consuming is wider than it ever has been and the things that have historically been gate kept are more accessible than ever. like knowledge and art and cultures from across the world that you’d never get to experience or know about at any previous point in history.
listen. do i think some of his theories hold water? sure. am i going to switch from tidal from spotify? yeah. am i creeped out about AI and want to get off my phone? yes. but i didn’t enjoy this book the longer it went on.
there were also wayyyy too many personal musings and unnecessary pretentious music/art reviews. got so boring about halfway thru it actually made me angry.
personally i’m more scared of how algorithms affect politics and community division than what generic popular coffee shop decor looks like lmao.
and then finally i feel like some of his statements are contradictory - “everyone is consuming the same things!” and “algorithms mold exactly to your unique taste keeping you from exploring other things”
not quite the black and white good vs evil things he’s going for, but like, i get it.
anyway i was relieved when this was over
i can’t say i bought into this fully. his whole thing is like “algorithms are ruining any kind of culture and dulling peoples’ unique taste and it’s the worst thing that’s happening” but like…there’s always been a boring mainstream, and there’s been/going to be fringe culture and pushback against that mainstream culture lmao. regardless of 50 years ago to now, that hasn’t changed. ppl have always been told what they should like (which he acknowledges!! curators and tastemakers, which historically have been white straight cis men so how is that something to mourn??). people who had the time and energy to really dig in and refine their niche tastes can thank their privilege for giving them the free time and resources to do so while everyone else was and is still just trying to survive under capitalism. and honestly i think the diversity of what we are consuming is wider than it ever has been and the things that have historically been gate kept are more accessible than ever. like knowledge and art and cultures from across the world that you’d never get to experience or know about at any previous point in history.
listen. do i think some of his theories hold water? sure. am i going to switch from tidal from spotify? yeah. am i creeped out about AI and want to get off my phone? yes. but i didn’t enjoy this book the longer it went on.
there were also wayyyy too many personal musings and unnecessary pretentious music/art reviews. got so boring about halfway thru it actually made me angry.
personally i’m more scared of how algorithms affect politics and community division than what generic popular coffee shop decor looks like lmao.
and then finally i feel like some of his statements are contradictory - “everyone is consuming the same things!” and “algorithms mold exactly to your unique taste keeping you from exploring other things”
not quite the black and white good vs evil things he’s going for, but like, i get it.
anyway i was relieved when this was over