They Say / I Blog

A case for critical media literacy: Maytha Alhassen and Zaheer Ali on how viral misinformation could affect future historians

Some people might argue that what we do online is our own personal business. Historians Maytha Alhassen and Zaheer Ali, however, contend that online spaces are instead part of our “public life.” In this May 19, 2021 essay, Alhassen and Ali argue that it is our “civic duty” to be critical about what we consume and circulate online, as the constant retweeting and reposting of potentially misleading information has consequences for both our present moment and the work of future historians.

Maytha Alhassen and Zaheer Ali, "By Any Memes Necessary: A Case Study for Critical Media Literacy," Los Angeles Review of Books, 19 May 2021.

 

All alone in our screens: Jenna Wortham on the paradox of wellness apps

As people deal with the persistent stressors of pandemic life, they are increasingly turning to mindfulness apps like Calm and Headspace to soothe their anxieties. Corporate wellness programs have jumped on the bandwagon, sponsoring these apps as a way to promote well-being for their employees, whose lives have suddenly moved almost completely online. In this essay, Jenna Wortham details the complexities of corporate wellness programs and the mindfulness apps sponsored by them. As you read (or listen!) to Wortham’s essay, note the connections she makes among corporate wellness programs, surveillance capitalism, the gig economy, and rising pay disparities in the US.

Jenna Wortham, "The Rise of the Wellness App," The New York Times Magazine, 17 February 2021

 

Masters of their own fate: Michael A. Cusumano, Annabelle Gawer, and David B. Yoffie on why social media companies should self-regulate

For all the good that social media platforms provide – connection, innovation, a panoply of perspectives – there is also a darker side, evident in online harassment, deep fake video and audio manipulations, and the widespread circulation of disinformation and conspiracy theories. What responsibility should social media companies take for the content hosted on their sites? In their January 2021 Harvard Business Review essay, Michael A. Cusumano, Annabelle Gawer, and David B. Yoffie argue that it is time for social media companies to self-regulate their platforms to secure “their long-term survival and success.”

Michael A. Cusumano, Annabelle Gawer, and David B. Yoffie, "Social Media Companies Should Self-Regulate. Now." Harvard Business Review, 15 January 2021

 

Tracking your data: Maria Gardner and Alyson Youngblood on the risks of “Internet of Bodies” devices

From fitness trackers to internet-connected insulin pumps, more companies are marketing “smart” devices that gather, track, and store digital data on a person’s health metrics, body functions, location, and movement. Together, these devices comprise what is now called the “Internet of Bodies” (IoB). In this October 29, 2020 article from the RAND Corporation, Maria Gardner and Alyson Youngblood describe the benefits and risks of IoB devices and detail policies that could regulate how data from these devices are used by corporations, the health care system, and the government

Maria Gardner and Alyson Youngblood, "The Internet of Bodies Will Change Everything, for Better or Worse," The RAND Blog, 29 October 2020

 

In real life: Jordan Frith on the metaphors we use to talk about online life

Is our online life—our Twitter debates, our Facebook relationship status, our Snapchat streaks, our Zoom classes—real? And why does this question matter? Jordan Frith, the Pearce Professor of Professional Communication at Clemson University, argues in his July 2020 article that our digital life is very much real, despite common metaphors used in popular culture. The way we talk about our digital life, as if it’s separate, ends up diminishing the importance of what people do and say online, though the consequences are no less important.

Jordan Frith, "Pushing Back on the Rhetoric of ‘Real Life,’" Present Tense: A Journal of Rhetoric in Society, 20 July 2020

 

Get out the vote: Jeanine Santucci about accessibility in the voting booth

Voting is a civic duty, an essential right in a democracy. However, as Santucci explains in her July 26, 2020 essay, people with disabilities face barriers to voting, even decades after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed. As you read, consider both Santucci’s immediate argument, about the pressing issues faced by people with disabilities, and the larger implications of inaccessible voting in a democracy.

Jeanine Santucci, "30 Years after the ADA, Access to Voting for People with Disabilities is Still an Issue," USA Today, 26 July 2020

 

Chance encounters: Steve LeVine on how Big Tech companies rely on spontaneity to fuel innovation

Sometimes the next big thing begins with a casual invitation to “talk more over smoothies.” In his July 13, 2020 essay, Steve LeVine explains how this kind of unscripted, casual, in-person networking drove the development of Silicon Valley companies like Facebook and Google. LeVine asks, though, if this reliance on spontaneity, jeopardized now by work-from-home orders, is something that could—or should—be saved.

Steve LeVine, "How Remote Work Could Destroy Silicon Valley," Marker, 13 July 2020

 

Priced out of protection: Ana Santos Rutschman on the politics of vaccine distribution

Should countries attempt to get dibs on a COVID-19 vaccine for their own citizens, even if it comes at the expense of more vulnerable populations in other countries? Ana Santos Rutschman, a law professor who specializes in health law and emerging health technologies, asks this question in her June 25, 2020 essay published in The Conversation. Her analysis of how governments are jockeying to sign pre-purchase agreements with vaccine manufacturers demonstrates the danger of nationalist policies for global health.

Ana Santos Rutschman–"How ‘Vaccine Nationalism’ Could Block Vulnerable Populations’ Access to COVID-19 Vaccines," The Conversation, 17 June 2020

 

Privacy and public health: Sidney Fussell on smartphone surveillance

How do we balance protecting individual rights and safeguarding public health? This question is at the heart of the current response to the COVID-19 global health crisis. In his March 21, 2020 WIRED article, Sidney Fussell asks whether using people’s smartphone data to track the virus is an infringement on privacy or a necessity to secure collective health and safety.

Sidney Fussell, "How Surveillance Could Save Lives Amid a Public Health Crisis," WIRED, 21 March 2020

 

Out in theaters: Martin Scorsese on the movie industry

When you go to the movies, what are you looking for? To see something surprising, challenging, or unexpected? Or to be happily entertained, consuming a bag of popcorn along with the latest superhero sequel? Perhaps your expectations are shaped by the Hollywood film industry and their willingness to take risks. Martin Scorsese, award-winning filmmaker and director, critiques modern film franchises in his November 4, 2019 op-ed in The New York Times. Think, as you read his piece, about how Scorsese’s perspective on the purpose of films might be different from yours, and why that might be.

Martin Scorsese, “I Said Marvel Movies Aren’t Cinema. Let Me Explain.” The New York Times, 4 November 2019