Danah Boyd
As seen in:
LinkedIn,
Medium,
OneZero,
The New York Times,
HuffPost,
The Guardian,
CNET,
The Wall Street Journal,
WIRED Magazine,
Fast Company
and
Cornell University | Author of "Data Are Made, Not Found" | made-not-found-by-danah-boyd.ghost.io/
Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Danah Boyd
Kids are outsmarting social media bans. That’s not a problem we need to solve.
Social media bans are stacking up. In July, France joined Australia in restricting minors from accessing social media—barring children under 15 from major platforms, before the ban was blocked by the country’s top court on human rights grounds. The UK aims to forbid kids under 16 from accessing Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms in early 2027, and the EU has announced its own plan to prohibit social media for kids under 15.
KOSA isn’t designed to help kids.
Congress is using kids to hold Big Tech accountable. Kids will get hurt in the process. In a few minutes, the Senate Judiciary will start a hearing focused on “Big Tech and the Online Child Exploitation Crisis.” Like most such hearings, this will almost certainly go off the rails in a wide variety of directions that I can’t even predict.
Fact Check Resources Miniguide 2024
BESPACIFIC Sabrina is also Researcher/Author of beSpacific ® - Accurate research surfacing documents and resources focused on law, technology, government reports, and knowledge discovery - with a global perspective. Updated daily since 2002 with a searchable database of more than 45,000 postings.
Here’s a Toast…
Marking exactly ten years since I put pen to paper to envision Data & Society, I have decided to step down from its board of directors in March 2023 and join the organization’s advisory group. In early March of 2013, I schemed a crazy scheme — one that would evolve into Data & Society, an amazing organization filled with brilliant people doing important work. Since then, I have played many roles in the organization. Event planner. Fundraiser. IKEA chair builder. Research coordinator.
Statistical Imaginaries: An Ode to Responsible Data Science
This text was first presented as a talk at the 2021 Microsoft Research Summit. If you would prefer to watch the talk, you may do so here. Three hundred thirty one million, four hundred forty nine thousand, two hundred and eighty one. According to the US Census Bureau, that is total residential population of the United States as of April 1, 2020. That number is a form of data theater. Statistics, in their original form, is the state’s science. State-istics.
The US Federal Government Needs a VP of Engineering, not a CTO
Nuts and Bolts by Kacey If you look at the roster of the Biden-Harris transition team, it’s quickly apparent that the incoming administration is tech-forward. Given the systematic dismantlement of the federal government over the last four years, and the significant logistical and scientific needs underpinning a large-scale vaccine roll-out, it is unsurprising to hear that the new team is looking to bring in tech talent.
Why Social Science Risks Irrelevance
Danah Boyd / 05 Aug 2016 05 Aug 2016 Why Social Science Risks Irrelevance "If we want social science to matter, we need to be much more thoughtful about the questions we ask," the author says. This article first ran in Items , a forum of the Social Science Research Council, as part of a multipart discussion, and appears here under the author approval. Why do we do social-science research? Is it to advance our careers or to elevate human knowledge?
Teens Are Addicted to Socializing, Not Screens
Screenagers in the time of coronavirus Photo: Rebecca Nelson/Getty Images If you’re a parent trying to corral your children into attending “school” online, you’ve probably had the joy of witnessing a complete meltdown. Tantrums are no longer the domain of two-year-olds; 15-year-olds are also kicking and screaming. Needless to say, so are the fortysomethings. Children are begging to go outside. Teenagers desperately want to share physical space with their friends.
How To Take An Email Sabbatical
By Danah Boyd6 minute Read We all need time off. Like serious time off. Time when we feel like we’re able to truly rejuvenate without the little panicked voice chirping away in the back of our heads fretting about the backlog of things we are going to have to deal with when we come in. Information overload can be a very taxing issue for many people. Luckily, many services allow us to go zen without making us feel guilty. Most of us can scan Twitter without obsessing over all that we missed.
Data voids: where missing data can easily be exploited
Description This report demonstrate how data voids are exploited by manipulators eager to expose people to problematic content including falsehoods, misinformation, and disinformation. Data voids are often difficult to detect. Most can be harmless until something happens that causes lots of people to search for the same term, such as a breaking news event, or a reporter using an unfamiliar phrase.
Facing the Great Reckoning Head-On
I cannot begin to express how honored I am to receive this award. My awe of the Electronic Frontier Foundation dates back to my teenage years. EFF has always inspired me to think deeply about what values should shape the internet. And so I want to talk about values tonight, and what happens when those values are lost, or violated, as we have seen recently in our industry and institutions.
Facing the Great Reckoning Head-On
Last night, I was honored by the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Alongside Oakland Privacy and William Gibson, I received a 2019 Barlow/Pioneer Award. I was asked to give a speech. As I reflected on what got me to this place, I realized I needed to reckon with how I have benefited from men whose actions have helped uphold a patriarchal system that has hurt so many people. I needed to face my past in order to find a way to create space to move forward. This is the speech I gave last night.
Agnotology and Epistemological Fragmentation
On April 17, 2019, Data & Society Founder and President danah boyd gave a talk at the Digital Public Library of America conference (DPLAfest). This is the transcript of that talk. I love the librarian community. You all are deeply committed to producing, curating, and enabling access to knowledge. Many of you embraced the internet with glee, recognizing the potential to help so many more people access critical information.
The Fragmentation of Truth
More seriously, my talk today begins with a discussion of YouTube because of its significant role in rearranging the information landscape. Tremendous ink has been spilled talking about Facebook and Twitter’s roles in the information and news landscape. Both have been dragged into Congress. But far too few people understand YouTube’s role in the information ecosystem, let alone the platform’s unique vulnerabilities, and what they show us about the current state of misinformation.
Google and Facebook Can’t Just Make Fake News Disappear
Google and Facebook Can’t Just Make Fake News Disappear Fake news is too big and messy to solve with algorithms or editors — because the problem is….us. Increasingly, I’m frustrated by (and often antagonistic toward) the emergent narrative about how to address so-called “fake news.” My anger is growing, not only because as I write this I’m almost 10 months pregnant and grouchy, but also because I see the possibility of well-intended interventions backfiring.
Media Manipulation, Strategic Amplification, and Responsible Journalism
This is a crib of a talk that Data & Society Founder and President danah boyd gave at the Online News Association conference in Austin, Texas on September 13, 2018. For a video of the talk, click here. In early September 2018, Facebook and Twitter were accused during a Congressional hearing of having anti-conservative bias.
The Messy Fourth Estate – Trust Issues – Medium
For the second time in a week, my phone buzzed with a New York Times alert, notifying me that another celebrity had died by suicide. My heart sank. I tuned into the Crisis Text Line Slack channel to see how many people were waiting for a counselor’s help. Volunteer crisis counselors were pouring in, but the queue kept growing. Celebrity suicides trigger people who are already on edge to wonder whether or not they too should seek death.
A Few Responses to Criticism of My SXSW-Edu Keynote on Media Literacy
Last week, I had the honor of keynoting SXSW-Edu. I was asked to be provocative and stir debate. You can read a crib of my talk here or watch the video. In my talk, I asked the audience and educators more broadly to challenge their assumptions about media literacy. Over the last week, I’ve been wading through the various public and private responses that I’ve received before crafting a broader response. This is my attempt to do so.
You Think You Want Media Literacy… Do You?
The below original text was the basis for Data & Society Founder and President danah boyd’s March 2018 SXSW Edu keynote,“What Hath We Wrought?” — Ed. Growing up, I took certain truths to be self evident. Democracy is good. War is bad. And of course, all men are created equal. My mother was a teacher who encouraged me to question everything. But I quickly learned that some questions were taboo. Is democracy inherently good? Is the military ethical? Does God exist?
The Reality of Twitter Puffery. Or Why Does Everyone Now Hate Bots?
A friend of mine worked for an online dating company whose audience was predominantly hetero 30-somethings. At some point, they realized that a large number of the “female” accounts were actually bait for porn sites and 1–900 numbers. I don’t remember if users complained or if they found it themselves, but they concluded that they needed to get rid of these fake profiles. So they did. And then their numbers started dropping. And dropping. And dropping.
Panicked about Kids’ Addiction to Tech? – danah boyd – Medium
Ever since key Apple investors challenged the company to address kids’ phone addiction, I’ve gotten a stream of calls asking me to comment on the topic. Mostly, I want to scream. I wrote extensively about the unhelpful narrative of “addiction” in my book It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens. At the time, the primary concern was social media.
Panicked about Kids’ Addiction to Tech? – NewCo Shift
Ever since key Apple investors challenged the company to address kids’ phone addiction, I’ve gotten a stream of calls asking me to comment on the topic. Mostly, I want to scream. I wrote extensively about the unhelpful narrative of “addiction” in my book It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens. At the time, the primary concern was social media.
Beyond the Rhetoric of Algorithmic Solutionism – Data & Society: Points
If you ever hear that implementing algorithmic decision-making tools to enable social services or other high stakes government decision-making will increase efficiency or reduce the cost to taxpayers, know that you’re being lied to. When implemented ethically, these systems cost more. And they should. Whether we’re talking about judicial decision making (e.g., “risk assessment scoring”) or modeling who is at risk for homelessness, algorithmic systems don’t simply cost money to implement.
The Radicalization of Utopian Dreams – Data & Society: Points
When you listen to people in tech talk about the future of labor, they will tell you that AI is taking over all of the jobs. What they gloss over is the gendered dynamics of the labor force. Many of the shortages in the workforce stem from labor that is culturally gendered “feminine” and seen as low-status. There’s no conception of how workforce dynamics in tech are also gendered.
Engaging the Ethics of Data Science in Practice
Engaging the Ethics of Data Science in Practice Critical commentary on data science has converged on a worrisome idea: that data scientists do not recognize their power and, thus, wield it carelessly. These criticisms channel legitimate concerns about data science into doubts about the ethical awareness of its practitioners. For these critics, carelessness and indifference explains much of the problem—to which only they can offer a solution. Such a critique is not new.
Your Data is Being Manipulated – Data & Society: Points
At this moment, AI is at the center of every business conversation. Companies, governments, and researchers are obsessed with data. Not surprisingly, so are adversarial actors. We are currently seeing an evolution in how data is being manipulated.
Tech Culture Can Change – danah boyd – Medium
To be honest, what surprises me most about the current conversation about the inhospitable nature of tech for women is that people are surprised. To say that discrimination, harassment, and sexual innuendos are an open secret is an understatement. I don’t know a woman in tech who doesn’t have war stories. Yet, for whatever reason, we are now in a moment where people are paying attention. And for that, I am grateful. Like many women in tech, I’ve developed strategies for coping.
Toward Accountability – Data & Society: Points
It’s easy to assume that, when we?—?data practitioners?—?commit to using data well, we are committing to using data for social good. But, if we want to do data responsibly, we need to challenge some basic assumptions and highlight how some values conflict. What if your project will increase inequality and hurt the people you’re trying to help? To begin with, is discrimination a bad thing? How do we define discrimination?
Why Google and Facebook can't just make fake news disappear
Increasingly, I'm frustrated by (and often antagonistic toward) the emergent narrative about how to address so-called "fake news." My anger is growing, not only because as I write this I'm almost 10 months pregnant and grouchy, but also because I see the possibility of well-intended interventions backfiring. I understand why folks want to do something now? — ?there's a lot of energy in this space, and the underlying issues at play have significant consequences for democracy and society.
When It Comes to Sex Trafficking, Tech Is Far From Neutral
Many of us live in a bubble where technology is a magical thing, a thing to be fiercely but safely debated on Twitter and in the blogosphere … which is why we don’t realize that tech has become the latest and most divisive actor (along with religion and politics) in discussions about sex trafficking. When most people think of sex trafficking — a form of violence where people are sexually exploited for commercial purposes — they immediately think of stereotypical images.
Five Misunderstandings About Bullying
Bullying is a serious issue. Cries to do something—anything—have triggered new legislation, school assemblies, and pressure to punish those who hurt others. The tenor of the discussion is one of grave concern mixed with moral panic. As difficult as it is to step back and gain perspective, we must do so in order to actually address the problem. As researchers, we have found that misunderstandings undermine interventions.
Truth, Lies, and ‘Doxxing’: The Real Moral of the Gawker/Reddit Story
Sitting U.S. President Ford was visiting San Francisco in 1975 when a woman attempted to shoot him. A former marine named Oliver Sipple grabbed the gun, preventing the assassination attempt. When the press began contacting him, he asked that his sexuality not be discussed. While Sipple was very active in the gay men’s scene in the Castro, he was not out to family or work. But Harvey Milk, a famous gay rights activist, chose to out him so the public could see that gay men could be heroes, too.
I liked to ride crocodiles.
Never miss a story from danah boyd, when you sign up for Medium. Learn moreNever miss a story from danah boyd
Beyond Aaron Swartz: We Don’t Need Martyrs … But Changes
Beloved internet and information activist Aaron Swartz took his life a few days ago. Since then, the internet has been in a state of networked mourning as renowned digerati and freedom fighters share personal stories of Aaron alongside their rage and frustration. For while it was no secret that Aaron struggled with depression, it was also no secret that recent years have been particularly hellish: Exactly two years before his suicide on January 11, Aaron was arrested.
What’s Next Health: Whom Do We Trust?
Consider the recent American presidential election, which is snarkily referred to as “post-factual.” The presidential candidates spoke past one another, refusing to be pinned down. News agencies went into overdrive to fact-check each statement made by each candidate, but the process became so absurd that folks mostly just gave up trying to get clarity. Instead, they focused on more fleeting issues like whether or not they trusted the candidates.
Whistleblowing Is the New Civil Disobedience
Like many other civil liberties activists, I’ve been annoyed by how the media has spilled more ink talking about Edward Snowden than the issues that he’s trying to raise. I’ve grumbled at the “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” reality show and the way in which TV news glosses over the complexities that investigative journalists have tried to publish as the story unfolded.
Will my grandchildren learn to drive? I expect not – The Message
I rarely drive these days, and when I do, it’s bloody terrifying. Even though I grew up driving and drove every day for fifteen years, my lack of practice is palpable as I grip the steering wheel. Every time I get behind the wheel, in order to silence my own fears about all of the ways in which I might crash, I ruminate over the anxieties that people have about teenagers and driving.
How Would You Define Work in a Networked World?
I've been scratching my head trying to think about how to understand the different facets of labor that are shaping contemporary life. I don't have good answers; I only have some provocations and a few questions, but I would love to hear your thoughts. As a teenager, I was a sandwich artist. I'd arrive at work, don my uniform and clock in. I had a long list of responsibilities - chopping onions, cleaning the shop, preparing the food, etc. Everything was formulaic.
a Future Tense event hosted by danah boyd.
In the series "My Favorite Movie," Future Tense—a partnership of Arizona State University, the New America Foundation, and Slate that explores emerging technologies—invites notable thinkers, policymakers, and journalists to share a film that they feel can inform the discussion of science and technology. On Monday, Dec.
Danah Boyd - It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens ♦
Danah Boyd - It's Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens ? Thursday, February 27, 2014 at 7:00 pmWith its bullying, sexting, and privacy issues, the Internet seems especially hazardous for young people. But is it any more dangerous than the real world? Boyd, a senior researcher at Microsoft, NYU professor, and Harvard Berman Center fellow, urges caution in restricting youth access to the Web, arguing that teens may find useful counselors and mentors there.
DANAH BOYD - It's Complicated
Is it possible that facebook, twitter, instagram and all of our new social media outlets AREN'T ruining teenagers? Yes! Join us today as youth culture and tech expert danah boyd explores tropes about identity, privacy, safety, danger, and bullying. boyd is Principal Researcher at Microsoft Research, Research Assistant Professor at New York University, and Fellow at Harvard University’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society.
Why Believing 'Nothing to Hide' Leaves You Vulnerable
Every April, I try to wade through mounds of paperwork to file my taxes. Like most Americans, I'm trying to follow the law and pay all of the taxes that I owe without getting screwed in the process. I try and make sure that every donation I made is backed by proof, every deduction is backed by logic and documentation that I'll be able to make sense of in seven years. Because, like many Americans, I completely and utterly dread the idea of being audited.
A Dazzling Film About Youth in the Early 20th Century – The Message
Close your eyes and imagine what it was like to be a teenager in the 1920s. Perhaps you are out late dancing swing to jazz or dressed up as a flapper. Most likely, you don’t visualize yourself stuck at home unable to see your friends like today’s teenagers. And for good reason. In the 1920s, teenagers used to complain when their parents made them come home before 11pm.
San Francisco’s (In)Visible Class War
What you can learn by talking to homeless folks In 2003, I was living in San Francisco and working at a startup when I overheard a colleague of mine — a self-identified libertarian — spout off about “the homeless problem.” I don’t remember exactly what he said, but I’m sure it fit into a well-trodden frame about no-good lazy leeches. I marched right over to him and asked if he’d ever talked to someone who was homeless.
Are We Training Our Students to be Robots?
Excited about the possibility that he would project his creativity onto paper, I handed my 1-year-old son a crayon. He tried to eat it. I held his hand to show him how to draw, and he broke the crayon in half. I went to open the door and when I came back, he had figured out how to scribble… all over the wooden floor. Crayons are pretty magical and versatile technologies. They can be used as educational tools?—?or alternatively, as projectiles.
Amazon.it: It's complicated. La vita sociale degli adolescenti sul web - Danah Boyd, F. Bertagna - Libri
Intanto diciamo che danah boyd mette a disposizione il download gratuito del testo in inglese, perchè esplicitamente dichiara che il suo scopo è far sì che più persone possibile possano accedere al libro, scritto non per far soldi ma per cambiare un punto di vista. Quale?
What If Social Media Becomes 16-Plus?
Implicit in this new law?—?and COPPA more generally?—?is an assumption that parents can and should consent on behalf of their children. I take issue with both. While some educated parents have thought long and hard about the flows of data, the identity work that goes into reputation, and the legal mechanisms that do or don’t protect children, they are few and far between.
Google and Facebook Can’t Just Make Fake News Disappear
Increasingly, I’m frustrated by (and often antagonistic toward) the emergent narrative about how to address so-called “fake news.” My anger is growing, not only because as I write this I’m almost 10 months pregnant and grouchy, but also because I see the possibility of well-intended interventions backfiring. I understand why folks want to do something now?—?there’s a lot of energy in this space, and the underlying issues at play have significant consequences for democracy and society.
Don’t Hate Silicon Valley Techies Who Complain About Money
I was 19 years old when some configuration of anonymous people came after me. They got access to my email and shared some of the most sensitive messages on an anonymous forum. This was after some of my girl friends received anonymous voice messages describing how they would be raped, and after the black and Latinx high school students I was mentoring were subject to targeted racist messages whenever they logged into the computer cluster we were all using.
When Good Intentions Backfire
… And Why We Need a Hacker Mindset CC BY 2.0-licensed image by DaveBleasdale. I am surrounded by people who are driven by good intentions. Educators who want to inform students, who passionately believe that people can be empowered through knowledge. Activists who have committed their lives to addressing inequities, who believe that they have a moral responsibility to shine a spotlight on injustice.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Danah
Contact Danah, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack