Voice Profiling and Freedom
January 9, 2023
Joseph Turow— Voice profiling is a gateway drug to a new era of hyper-personalized targeting. Since Apple introduced Siri for the phone in 2010 and Amazon debuted Alexa in 2014—with… READ MORE
Tag: technology
Nineteenth-Century Smartphones?
September 17, 2021
Laura Forsberg— It is a truism, by this point, that smartphones have revolutionized our lives. In less than fifteen years, we have developed new ways of communicating with friends and… READ MORE
The Voice Catchers
August 12, 2021
Joseph Turow— Public attention to the voice industry has centered primarily on smart speakers. Dubbed “voice first” devices by marketers, these are cylinders (or more recently other shapes) that sometimes… READ MORE
From Dante to Disney
April 12, 2021
José María Pérez Fernández and Edward Wilson-Lee— A few days ago, a subsecretary in the newly-installed Italian government led by Mario Draghi tweeted out to followers an inspiring message which… READ MORE
Venmo’s “Social Feed” as Financial Scrapbooking
January 8, 2021
Lana Swartz— In2017 New Yorker comic, Olivia de Recat presents a series of hand-drawn Venmo transactions and decodes what they really mean. Venmo, currently the most widespread person-to-person payment app… READ MORE
The Pace of Change
May 20, 2020
Danny Dorling— Did you think that the rate of innovation was rising and that more and more was being invented every year? Did you pause to question the claim, if… READ MORE
Virtual Weapons and International Order
March 5, 2019
Lucas Kello— Every historical era begins with a revolution: it comes of age when revolution becomes the new normal. The Reformation began when a disaffected Augustinian friar asked, What authority… READ MORE
A History of Servers: From Lazy Suzan to Alexa
November 9, 2018
Markus Krajewski— When Amazon introduced the world to a black, cylindrical cartouche with built-in ears and a female voice that answers to the name of Alexa in 2015, more than… READ MORE
Hunting Mobile Shoppers
February 7, 2018
Joseph Turow— “Bricks and mortar is dead; long live bricks and mortar!” This was the surprising theme that emerged from the sprawling 2014 Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition, reported Laura… READ MORE
The Monastery and the Microscope
October 4, 2017
James Doty— Over the past few days, you have heard my colleagues discuss evolution, neuroanatomy, empathy, compassion, affiliative behavior, and the impact of genetics and the environment, as well as… READ MORE
A Little Book True to Its Title