Where AI helps the “echo chamber” to become too personal.
2020
The January 6th attack on the United States Capitol is a sign of how different people living under different media spheres of influence may believe in different sets of “facts,” thus acting quite differently from other people when it comes to political action. Nowadays, thanks to carefully crafted algorithms, we are receiving highly personalized information through entertainment and information media outlets. The algorithms and machines that support them are only becoming more effective and efficient every day. So far, this phenomenon has resulted in separated sociopolitical bubbles in the society – people who receive almost the same information (yet clearly distinguishable from what “others” receive), share the same beliefs, and engage in certain communities. In a lack of regulation in the future, these bubbles may become as small to fit only one person: you. You may soon find yourself isolated from others but surrounded by the contents you desire.
The premise of the story of Subre is that through AI and machine learning, a service emerges that delivers media entertainment (including news) in a very subjective and personalized manner to the users. Imagine if, for example, a movie offers countless desirable endings for different viewers based on their preferences. This imaginary service and the corporation behind it are called Subre. Due to recent incidents in 2050, the public has become more aware of the company’s activities. Therefore, Subre’s CEO, Brian Kinsky is invited to the congress to testify on the potential dangers of their product and their proposition to protect the public from possible harm. This Pecha Kucha portrays a recital of his testimonial before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, accompanied by relevant visuals and roleplayed by me.
The entire performance is a sociopolitical commentary on how we perceive news and act on it, and moreover, how important it is to agree on objective truth. It uses familiar elements, like Senate hearings, Newspaper articles, and political debates to extrapolate current trends into the future and ultimately critique the ways we address issues like user privacy and fake news in our societies back in 2020.
Trying to convey this story through a Pecha Kucha presentation helped to define the fast pace of events and information provided for the audience. This is a key characteristic of the medium that reflects itself to how the story of Subre is told. Whereas there is not much flexibility in planning the presentation, the time constraint demands more careful storytelling decisions. This, as became evident to me in the process of producing the presentation, can help any amateur storyteller to manage their work, and could be considered a benefit in future projects.
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