Discursive contestations of algorithms: a case study of recommendation platforms in China

Abstract

This paper seeks to add to a growing body of literature on critical algorithm studies by exploring how the discursivity interacts with the materiality of algorithms and shapes algorithmic outputs. It takes ByteDance, a Chinese technology company specialized in running algorithm-driven content platforms, as a case to probe the discursive contestations of algorithms and argues that algorithms are inscribed with pre-existing values and norms. However, different parties, users, and regulators interpret algorithms differently, which, in turn, reshapes their outcomes. What is particularly interesting in the case of ByteDance is that, while previous studies have examined how algorithms automate connections for sociality, culture, and reality, this paper further extends the argument that algorithms are also effective in (re)producing ideology that has accommodated the algorithmic logic and the platformization of content production. This study is also “a discourse about discourses” (Foucault, The order of things: An archaeology of the human sciences. Random House, 1973, p. 205) and aims to contribute to our understanding of algorithms and their power.