Government algorithm plans prompt debate

Australians are being urged to look beyond the headline and understand how journalism is made as news organisations confront a rapidly changing information landscape dominated by social media algorithms and AI.

It was great getting a sense of the deep ethnographic research Agata has undertaken and the links between digital literacy and digital empowerment. What I took away from the conversation was a sense that the algorithms that drive our feeds are not just code, they have a shape and form that evolves based on our interactions. While I would put myself in an ‘algorithms are bad’ camp, I find more people I speak with saying they like their algorithm, it makes their life easier, they just want it to do its work without all the slop and noise. This is where the business models behind the social media platforms come in and left to their own devices, will serve copy to maximise time on screen through extreme content. Counteracting that with hacks like conscious engagement could change our online experiences for the better.

The Albanese government is scrambling to answer questions about national security and the dangers posed by artificial intelligence following revelations that a rogue AI agent deployed by OpenAI hacked sensitive Australian data, including aggregate Medicare records. Social media platforms would have to ask users, through prompts that appear from time to time, whether they want to keep a personalised, algorithm-driven feed or instead see mostly the accounts they have chosen to follow.

As the nation celebrates seven decades of broadcast television, the industry also confronts questions about the future in an increasingly digital world. For more on this, we spoke with Dr Timothy Koskie, a post-doctoral research associate at The University of Sydney’s Centre for AI Trust and Governance.