Naslov
Layers of ideology and labour behind Google’s search algorithm

Autori
Bilić, Paško

Vrsta, podvrsta i kategorija rada
Sažeci sa skupova, pp prezentacija, znanstveni

Skup
European Sociological Association RN18 mid-term conference: Rethinking Power in Communicative Capitalism: Critical Perspectives on Media, Culture and Society

Mjesto i datum
Lisabon, Portugal, 08.09.2016. - 10.09.2016

Vrsta sudjelovanja
Predavanje

Vrsta recenzije
Međunarodna recenzija

Ključne riječi
Digital labour; ideology; search engines

Sažetak
This presentation aims to untangle the closely knit relationship between Google’s ideologies of technical neutrality and global market dominance. Neutrality construction comprises an important element sustaining the company’s economic position. Constant updates, estimates and changes to utility and relevance of search results reflect this operating norm. However, providing a purely technical solution to web search proves increasingly difficult without a human hand in steering algorithmic solutions. Neutrality fluctuates and shifts through continuous tinkering and tweaking of the search algorithm. To aid this process the company uses third parties to hire human raters for performing quality assessments of algorithmic updates in linguistically and culturally diverse global markets. The adaptation process contradicts the technical foundations of the company and calculations based on the Page Rank algorithm. A full account of the relations between company engineers, internet users and the work of human raters who adapt search results to local languages in global markets is not entirely disclosed by the company. Theoretically, the presentation draws on the social contextualisation and social arrangements of machines and algorithms (MacKenzie, 1984, 2014 ; Gillespie, 2014) and, more broadly, theoretical approaches from the critical political economy of communication and digital labour (Garnham, 1986 ; Mosco, 2009, 2011 ; Fuchs, 2010 ; 2015 ; Fuchs and Sevignani, 2013 ; Fisher, 2015 ; Comor, 2015 ; Robinson, 2015). It takes an inductive, explorative and critical approach to determine contingencies between publicised technical decisions and to clarify how, and where, they interweave with profit motives and discourses legitimising these choices. Annual market reports and other publicly available documents will be analysed and presented. Intertwined layers of ideology, hidden labour of human raters, advertising revenues, market dominance and control will be discussed throughout the presentation.

Izvorni jezik
Engleski

Znanstvena područja
Sociologija

POVEZANOST RADA