Princeton sociologist Ruha Benjamin argues bias is encoded in new tech
Posted: September 04, 2019
Last Updated: September 04, 2019

Sociologist Ruha Benjamin argues in her book, Race After Technology, that the use of technology has the capability to enforce discrimination while appearing neutral. (Shutterstock / maxuser)

In this episode called Technical Salvation, Ideas host, Nahlah Ayed, talks with Princeton sociologist, Dr. Ruha Benjamin. Together, they explore her argument that technology reproduces the same kind of racial segregation we see in our physical world.

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There is an assumption that technology, unlike people, is unbiased, neutral, and objective. As cuts to public schools make hiring more teachers an impossibility in struggling districts, school boards are turning to tablets and apps to replace human instructors but apparently forgetting that student-teacher interactions are a key component of learning.

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‘We put so much investment in being saved by these objects we create, by these technologies. But our real resource is ourselves.’

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https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/how-algorithms-create-a-digital-underclass-1.5269959