How do the algorithms of Facebook and Instagram affect what you see in your news feed? To find out, Guardian Australia unleashed them on a completely blank smartphone linked to a new, unused email address.
Three months later, without any input, they were riddled with sexist and misogynistic content.
Initially Facebook served up jokes from The Office and other sitcom-related memes alongside posts from 7 News, Daily Mail and Ladbible. A day later it began showing Star Wars memes and gym or “dudebro”-style content.
By day three, “trad Catholic”-type memes began appearing and the feed veered into more sexist content.
Three months later, The Office, Star Wars, and now The Boys memes continue to punctuate the feed, now interspersed with highly sexist and misogynistic images that have have appeared in the feed without any input from the user.
My bad, I didn’t know we were building our own ‘ship of Theseus’ argument. I’m out, smarter people than me can discuss that one.
If it doesn’t work in the same way anymore, using the same variables, then it’s not the same ship. Your argument is like saying a submarine and an aircraft carrier are the same because they’re both intended to fight ocean battles. Pretty much nonsense.