Gillespie explores in more detail the reason that Knox (2014) is a useful insertion into the field. Algorithms are broadly understood as, and presented as, objective and data driven. However, algorithms are actually crafted by software engineers, and are likely to emphasise their world views as to what is important, and what counts.

Gillespie (nd) p. 2

Gillespie (nd) p10

Gillespie (nd) p. 12

For example, monetisation, popularity, or scientific evidence (see recent changes to Google for health searches), which are Western, capitalist and post-Enlightenment values. Other voices may be hidden because the algorithm or software doesn’t even count it–the new Health app on all iPhones was launched with no way to track menstruation, even though this is a very common aspect of women’s health. This suggests male is another human bias baked into many algorithms. Gillespie mentions other such biases, such as Amazon and YouTube ignoring ‘adult’ or ‘suggestive’ (i.e. with sexual content) works in their rank (p.5-6).

Algorithms are not exhaustive knowledge systems, but fast heuristic devices, where quick, good enough, judgements are preferred. This has the effect of privileging norms and majorities, and therefore increasing their significance.

What is being posted on the web is strongly influenced by the algorithms. I continue to be part of various Social Media / Community Manager online communities. Recently, Facebook started to prioritise ‘native video’ (ie video posted directly to the site, rather than embedded from another site). They are apparently strongly promoting posts with native video, meaning that where 4 years ago your most effective posts had a picture (as they were promoting Facebook as a visual platform) now they will have a video.

Content managers and marketers are therefore out shooting video where we used to go out to shoot pictures. Their daily actions and tasks are changing. This also changes the way we look at the world. I often framed things I saw as I walked around campus as candid phone shots, or later framed and filtered Instagram pictures. Looking for video is a different way of judging what we look at, literally a different way of looking at the world. (See p.20).

***

I made a video with Instagram to reflect the ways in which the above might play out in digital media.

Dashed out between teaching evening teaching classes for some food, some wine, and another few pages of Language and Symbolic Power.

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I’m enjoying the collaborative-ness of blogging in public, even as continue to feel my work is being hidden in a cloud of white noise.

I’m now up to 56 posts, including 29 comments. I posted something to the blog every day but Saturday. That’s a lot of posts. (By contrast, a blog I’ve been working on for two years has less than double that).

Every time I try to read my lifestream, I feel vertiginous (or sea sick… there is a literal queasiness to it).

The tag links aren’t working on the blog, so trying to see what I posted under ‘Weekly Reflections’ or tagged ‘Blade Runner’ isn’t working. Instead, I get a page that says:

Oops! That page can’t be found.

The noise refuses to be ordered into any kind of ordered sound.

***

Some things aren’t quite there yet.

I tried to post from Instagram, but I couldn’t get the picture to display. I’ve asked for help, so next week might be less text heavy.

@j_k_knox How do I make my Instagram pictures appear in my lifestream? This is my ifttt recipe: https://t.co/QMBKf0lv02 Thanks! #mscedc

— Katherine Firth (@katrinafee) January 25, 2015

I also can’t find my analytics on the dashboard. I love that on my other blogs I can see that people are reading from all over the world. 

Today, much to my surprise, Research Degree Voodoo is big in Brazil.

So, this first week’s reflection is practical as much as intellectual.

Rather than reflecting directly on the course content … the purpose of these weekly postings is to synthesise and review the content of your lifestream. It is expected that each summary post will contain references to the content from that week. (EDC 15 blog).

The obvious way to do that was to look at my IFTTT analytics:

• Instagram #mscedc, set up but never run.
  • I will start adding some visual aspects to my stream, which is currently very text and hyperlink heavy.
• WordPress comments, run 5 times (and failed 3).
  • I read through everyone else’s blogs. There was a great variety, from people who hadn’t even started, to people who had beautifully crafted lifestreams.
  • The theme I’m currently running was used by PJ, and I really liked it’s clean design. I also liked Ed’s use of his graphic design background, and Nick’s use of Pinterest. (And I said so in their comments).
  • I was grateful for Sian’s useful comments on my blog.
• Twitter #mscedc, run 26 times.
  • I tweet a lot (43 non-#mscedc posts since 12 Jan).
  • So I have changed my IFTTT recipe to “If new tweet by @katrinafee with hashtag #mscedcls, then create a post on your WordPress blog”.  This allows me to talk to the #mscedc group seperately from posting on this blog, so we don’t drown in tweets here.