Constructing the Meaning of Humanoid Sex Robots

Humanoid sex robots seem to challenge the human–machine distinction because one way to engage with them is to entertain the illusion that they are human and appropriate for intimacy. This inclination is intentionally induced by robot designers, and several narratives envision and claim that robots of the future will be indistinguishable from humans. In this article Deborah Johnson is taking an anticipatory ethics approach and using critical discourse analysis, to argue that current discourse about sex robots does not adequately recognize the sociotechnical nature of humanoid sex robot development.

Johnson, Deborah G., and Mario Verdicchio. 2019. “Constructing the Meaning of Humanoid Sex Robots”. Int J of Soc Robotics. 12: 415–424. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12369-019-00586-z

2019hedvig idåsSeptember 11, 20192019

Invisibility in Visual and Material Culture

ViSmedia team member Øyvind Vågenes newest book Invisibility in Visual and Material Culture is filled with exiting essays that’s pioneering and revelatory the insights into the phenomenon of invisibility, forging new and multi-disciplinary approaches at the intersection of aesthetics, technology, representation and politics. The chapters reveal that the invisible affects many cultural domains, from digital communication and operative images to the activism of social movements, as well as to identity, race, gender and class issues. Whether the subject is comic books, photographic provocations, biometric and brainwave sensing technologies, letters, or a cinematic diary.

Grønstad, Asbjørn and Øyvind Vågenes. 2019. Invisibility in Visual and Material Culture. Edited book. Palgrave Macmillan

2019, Surveillance, VisualsHedvig IdåsSeptember 4, 20192019

Televisual epistemologies and beyond

In this interview by Øyvind Vågnes, media scholar and MIT professor, Lisa Parks shares her reflections on a range of questions that remain central to her research. Including what television is at the present moment and might become in the future; how satellites could be treated as part of an integrated history of media; the compartmentalizations of academia; research on surveillance, and the relationship between surveillance and capitalism; the invisibility and materiality of infrastructure, and the significance of field-based research practices; the entanglement of scholarship and social engagement; the emerging Silicon Valley satellite industry, vertical mediation and political resistance; and the urgency of environmental media studies.

Parks, Lisa. “Televisual Epistemologies and Beyond.” Journal of Visual Culture 18 (2): 234–49. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470412919864309.

2019hedvig idåsAugust 14, 20192019

How could deepfakes impact the 2020 U.S. elections?

Nicholas Diakopoulos and Deborah Johnson goals behind this article are to stimulate reflection on the ethics and governance of emerging technologies. Specifically, focused on the use of these technologies in the context of the 2020 U.S. election. With this article Diakopoulos and Johnson seeks to encourage debate about potential responses by various stakeholders, like: social media platforms, journalists, technology developers, and policymakers. To ensure that the outcomes of democratic processes aren’t negatively impacted by deepfakes.

Diakopoulos, Nicholas and Deborah Jonson. 2019. “How could deepfakes impact the 2020 U.S. elections?”. Available at: https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/06/how-could-deepfakes-impact-the-2020-u-s-elections/

2019hedvig idåsJune 13, 20192019

Automating the News: How Algorithms Are Rewriting the Media

ViSmedia team member Nicholas Diakopoulos reveals how machine learning and data mining have transformed investigative journalism. Newsbots converse with social media audiences, distributing stories and receiving feedback. Online media has become a platform for A/B testing of content, helping journalists to better understand what moves audiences. Algorithms can even draft certain kinds of stories. These techniques enable media organizations to take advantage of experiments and economies of scale, enhancing the sustainability of the fourth estate. But they also place pressure on editorial decision-making, because they allow journalists to produce more stories, sometimes better ones, but rarely both. read more here.

Diakopoulos, Nicholas. 2019. Automating the News: How Algorithms Are Rewriting the Media. Massachusetts, Harvard University Press

2019, AlgorithmsHedvig IdåsJune 10, 20192019, nicholas

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ViSmedia

Department of Information Science and Media Studies

Financed by the research council of Norway