Al Gore says social media algorithms are "the digital equivalent of AR-15s. They ought to be banned." pic.twitter.com/YQvvDYSyDJFormer Vice President Al Gore called for social media algorithms to be banned while speaking at the Bloomberg Green at COP28 event.
Gore said that social media platforms “dominated by algorithms” are the “digital equivalent of AR-15s.”
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) December 5, 2023
“If you have social media that is dominated by algorithms that pull people down these rabbit holes that are a bit like pitcher plants, these algorithms, they are the digital equivalent of AR-15s,” Gore stated. “They ought to be banned, they really ought to be banned. It’s an abuse of the public forum.”
The liberal activist said that the way algorithms work often puts people into echo chambers where they do not hear other perspectives. "These algorithms, they are the digital equivalent of AR-15s, they ought to be banned"And you spend too much time in the echo chamber, what’s weaponized is another form of AI —not artificial intelligence, artificial insanity. I’m serious. I’m serious. Qanon is just the best known version of artificial insanity.
“And these devices are the enemies of self-government, and they’re the enemies of democracy. We need reforms for both democracy and capitalism,” the former politician added.
Former US Vice President Al Gore talks about the "artificial insanity" found in social media echo chambers#COP28 latest: https://t.co/00Lu3933LX pic.twitter.com/o0g4MZDlxK
— Bloomberg UK (@BloombergUK) December 5, 2023
The Hill reports, "Algorithms used by social media platforms have faced scrutiny for years. Attention to the potential threats created by algorithms rose in 2021 after a Facebook whistleblower testified on Capitol Hill that the company’s decisions over its algorithms 'are a huge problem — for children, for public safety, for democracy.'"
"YouTube faced similar blowback for its algorithm in recent years for directing users to misleading and extremist content on its platform," the report added. "In 2021, YouTube announced it removed more than 1 million videos related to “dangerous coronavirus information” since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic."
