Fresh Air, NPR; How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter
"After buying Twitter in 2022, Elon Musk instituted sweeping changes. He laid off or fired about 75% of the staff –including about half the data scientists. He also ended rules banning hate speech and misinformation. Authors Kate Conger and Ryan Mac recount the takeover in Character Limit."
Brian Moriarty , HBSR, Timothy Meagher . HBSR , Daniel Fleisher , HBSR, Bloomberg Law; Digital Image Creation Using AI Risks Copyright Infringement
"Generative artificial intelligence has radically transformed the world of digital images. Anyone seeking to make a website, a video, or any other visual media can quickly use an AI program to convert their ideas into a new image with help from a few text prompts.
The image maker can do so at low cost and without the need to hire a digital artist to create the image. Copyright protection may not be available for the new creation (because a computer and not a human created the image). But the image maker may mistakenly believe that the final AI creation doesn’t infringe others’ copyrights because it’s a new image. This isn’t the case."
Beatrix Lockwood, The Washington Post; ‘I quit my job as a content moderator. I can never go back to who I was before.’
"Alberto Cuadra worked as a content moderator at a video-streaming platform for just under a year, but he saw things he’ll never forget. He watched videos about murders and suicides, animal abuse and child abuse, sexual violence and teenage bullying — all so you didn’t have to. What shows up when you scroll through social media has been filtered through an army of tens of thousands of content moderators, who protect us at the risk of their own mental health.
Warning: The following illustrations contain references to disturbing content."
GABRIELA SÁ PESSOA , AP; G20 nations agree to join efforts to fight disinformation and set AI guidelines
"Group of 20 leaders agreed Friday to join efforts to fight disinformation and set up an agenda on artificial intelligence as their governments struggle against the speed, scale and reach of misinformation and hate speech.
The ministers, who gathered this week in Maceio, the capital of the northeastern state of Alagoas, emphasized in a statement the need for digital platforms to be transparent and “in line with relevant policies and applicable legal frameworks.”
It is the first time in the G20’s history that the group recognizes the problem of disinformation and calls for transparency and accountability from digital platforms, João Brant, secretary for digital policy at the Brazilian presidency, told The Associated Press by phone.
G20 representatives also agreed to establish guidelines for developing artificial intelligence, calling for “ethical, transparent, and accountable use of AI,” with human oversight and compliance with privacy and human rights laws."
Poynter Institute; Poynter: When it comes to using AI in journalism, put audience and ethics first
"Download a PDF of the full report, “Poynter Summit on AI, Ethics & Journalism: Putting audience and ethics first.”
Rapidly advancing generative artificial intelligence technology and journalism have converged during the biggest election year in history. As more newsrooms experiment with AI, the need for ethical guidelines and audience feedback have surfaced as key challenges.
The Poynter Institute brought together more than 40 newsroom leaders, technologists, editors and journalists during its Summit on AI, Ethics & Journalism to tackle both topics. For two days in June 2024, representatives from the Associated Press, the Washington Post, Gannett, the Invisible Institute, Hearst, McClatchy, Axios and Adams along with OpenAI, the Online News Association, the American Press Institute, Northwestern University and others, debated the use of generative AI and its place within the evolving ethics of journalism
The goals: Update Poynter’s AI ethics guide for newsrooms with insight from journalists, editors, product managers and technologists actually using the tools. And outline principles for ethical AI product development that can be used by a publisher or newsroom to put readers first.
Data from focus groups convened through a Poynter and University of Minnesota partnership underscored discussion, while a hackathon tested attendees to devise AI tools based on audience trust and journalistic ethics.""
Peter Eavis and Danielle Kaye, The New York Times; Norfolk Southern Fires C.E.O. After Ethics Investigation
"Norfolk Southern, the beleaguered freight railroad giant, said on Wednesday that it had fired its chief executive, Alan H. Shaw, for having an affair with the company’s chief legal officer.
In a news release, Norfolk Southern said Mr. Shaw, who became chief executive in May 2022, had a consensual relationship with its top lawyer, Nabanita C. Nag, who was also fired.
Mark R. George, the company’s chief financial officer, was named president and chief executive officer, Norfolk Southern said.
“This change in leadership comes in connection with preliminary findings from an ongoing investigation that determined Shaw violated company policies” by engaging in a relationship with Ms. Nag, the company said. “Shaw’s departure is unrelated to the company’s performance, financial reporting and results of operations.”"
Anand Giridharadas, The Ink; Kamala won by being all the things
"Last night Vice President Kamala Harris faced the impossible, contradictory demands women face in politics and in all of public life, and she said, “Yes-and-and-and-and.”
She had to thread the smallest of needles, starting with that mix of aggressive and mannered, then being joyful and tough, gracious and angry, and contemptuous and hopeful, and incredulous and credible, pugnacious and nurturing, pitying and alarmed.
In one sense, there are very few women in the world who will have had the precise experience the vice president did last night. But I doubt there are many women who have not felt themselves forced to thread that needle and win by being all the things.
Last night Kamala Harris was all the things.
What came back to me as I watched was Gloria’s monologue in the “Barbie” movie, delivered for the ages by America Ferrera.
It is literally impossible to be a woman…
You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can’t ask for money because that’s crass. You have to be a boss, but you can’t be mean. You have to lead, but you can’t squash other people’s ideas…
It’s too hard! It’s too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault.
These incentives and pressures are not fair, but they exist. Last night, as much as any political leader in memory, Harris thrived at being all the things at once — all the things a single person should not have to be."
MATT WHITE, Task & Purpose; Four Marines trained an Air Force base to take the Marine Corps fitness test. The Air Force gave them medals for it
[Kip Currier: Proud son of a U.S. Air Force veteran -- my Dad -- with my early boyhood years spent on a USAF base, and also have Marine culture present in my life, too.
Thanks to ALL who served/serve to keep us safe and work tirelessly to maintain our democracy.
Using this cool, inspiring story in my Strategic Planning lecture later today for my Managing and Leading Information Services graduate course this term...Great examples of:
[Excerpts]
"Since 2022, a small group of Marines at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas have been holding Marine Corps-style PT sessions for airmen going through the base’s professional development schools.
Their goal: get the troops from the Air Force — often denigrated by more fitness-oriented branches as the ‘Chair Force’ — to pass the Marine Corps’ grueling Combat Fitness Test.
Apparently, the Marines did such a dedicated, motivated and fired-up job that the base commander decorated them with Air Force medals.
Marine Sgt. Alexander Martinez led the program and was one of four Marines who received an award for developing the fitness regimen.
“Being a Marine on an Air Force base is a culture shock, but working with a sister branch in a joint effort is extremely valuable,” Martinez told Task & Purpose in an email...
“The airmen are most enthusiastic when they finish the entire CFT and sometimes they will ask if they can run another one in the future,” said Alexander.
Some, he said, truly excelled. Senior Airman Svetlana Escobar joined Martinez’s team of instructors after scoring a perfect 300.
In the last two years at Little Rock, the Marines put nine classes of the Airman Leadership School through the training, along with 12 other professional seminars and three all-base sporting events with 400 people."
News Staff, Government Technology; New Resource Examines Data Governance in the Age of AI
"A new guide for policymakers, “Data Policy in the Age of AI: A Guide to Using Data for Artificial Intelligence,” aims to educate leaders on responsible AI data use.
The question of how to best regulate artificial intelligence (AI) is one lawmakers are still addressing, as they are trying to balance innovation with risk mitigation. Meanwhile, state and local governments are creating their own regulations in the absence of a comprehensive federal policy.
The new white paper, from the Data Foundation, a nonprofit supporting data-informed public policy, is intended to be a comprehensive resource. It outlines three key pieces of effective data policy: high-quality data, effective governance principles and technical capacity."
Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times; Forget the Yacht. The Best Travel Is on Foot, Through Wilderness
"It was in this same period that I developed a passion for backpacking, and I suspect that I unconsciously prescribed myself wilderness therapy to heal.
It works. I see wild spaces as a place to think, to escape cellphones and editors (sorry, boss!), to connect with loved ones, to be dazzled and humbled by the vastness of space and the slowness of geologic time, to escape class divides, to purge ourselves of frustrations and political toxicity, to bare our souls, to be recharged.
Thank God for America’s best idea."
RICK ANDERSON, The Scholarly Kitchen; Revisiting: Libraries and the Contested Terrain of “Neutrality”
"The question of whether libraries can – or even should – be “neutral” has been a difficult and controversial one for years. It is now becoming even more so as book bans become more prevalent and command more public attention. Recently, the political Right has increased its efforts to get books on various topics pulled from library shelves, especially in public and school libraries; the Left, on the other hand, generally engages in book banning from a different angle, trying to stop books from being published, calling for them not to be sold, and retroactively censoring books already published. In this politically charged context, the American Library Association offers an incoherent advocacy message, on one hand asserting that libraries must provide “an impartial environment” that offers “information spanning the spectrum of knowledge and opinions,” while on the other decrying “neutrality rhetoric” in librarianship for its role in “emboldening and encouraging white supremacy and fascism.”
A fundamental question remains insufficiently examined: in the context of libraries, what does “neutral” actually mean? Are there ways in which libraries can and should be “neutral,” and ways in which they should not? This post from several years ago examined these questions – ones that seem even more urgent in the current moment than they did then."
Cara S. Bertram, American Libraries; Censorship Throughout the Centuries
"American Libraries travels through time to outline our country’s history of censorship—and the library workers, authors, and advocates who have defended the right to read."
Press Release, National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH); NEH Awards $2.72 Million to Create Research Centers Examining the Cultural Implications of Artificial Intelligence
"The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) today announced grant awards totaling $2.72 million for five colleges and universities to create new humanities-led research centers that will serve as hubs for interdisciplinary collaborative research on the human and social impact of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies.
As part of NEH’s third and final round of grant awards for FY2024, the Endowment made its inaugural awards under the new Humanities Research Centers on Artificial Intelligence program, which aims to foster a more holistic understanding of AI in the modern world by creating scholarship and learning centers across the country that spearhead research exploring the societal, ethical, and legal implications of AI.
Institutions in California, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Virginia were awarded NEH grants to establish the first AI research centers and pilot two or more collaborative research projects that examine AI through a multidisciplinary humanities lens.
The new Humanities Research Centers on Artificial Intelligence grant program is part of NEH’s agencywide Humanities Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence initiative, which supports humanities projects that explore the impacts of AI-related technologies on truth, trust, and democracy; safety and security; and privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. The initiative responds to President Biden’s Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence, which establishes new standards for AI safety and security, protects Americans’ privacy, and advances equity and civil rights."
Karina Fitzgerald , ASU; ASU workgroup addresses ethical questions about the use of AI in higher ed
"As artificial intelligence becomes more ubiquitous in our everyday lives, the AI and Ethics Workgroup at Arizona State University's Lincoln Center for Applied Ethics is working to establish ethical guidelines and frameworks for the deployment of AI technologies.
Composed of experts from a variety of fields, the workgroup is dedicated to navigating the complex ethical challenges arising from rapid advancements in AI. The group published their first white paper earlier this month, which focuses on the use of AI tools in higher education.
The workgroup’s co-chairs are Sarah Florini, the associate director of the Lincoln Center and an associate professor of film and media studies, and Nicholas Proferes, an associate professor for ASU’s School of Social and Behavioral Sciences.
Florini and Proferes shared some insights into their workgroup’s research process and their publication, “AI and Higher Education: Questions and Projections.”...
Q: What can educators and institutions start doing today to instill more responsible, ethical adoption of AI-related technologies?
Florini: Get involved and participate in the conversations surrounding these technologies. We all need to be part of the efforts to shape how they will be integrated into colleges and universities. The terrain around AI is moving quickly, and there are many stakeholders with diverging opinions about the best course of action. We all need to be developing a critical understanding of these technologies and contributing to the process of determining how they align with our values.
Proferes: Have conversations with your community. Not just your peers, but with every stakeholder who might be impacted. Create spaces for that dialogue. Map out what the collective core values you want to achieve with the technology are, and then develop policies and procedures that can help support that.
But also, be willing to revisit these conversations. Very often with tech development, ethics is treated as a checkbox, rather than an ongoing process of reflection and consideration. Living wisely with technology requires phronesis, or practical wisdom. That’s something that’s gained over time through practice. Not a one-and-done deal."
