Controversial Content Research Articles

Failure of chatbot Tay was evil, ugliness and uselessness in its nature or do we judge it through cognitive shortcuts and biases?

This study deals with the failure of one of the most advanced chatbots called Tay, created by Microsoft. Many users, commentators and experts strongly anthropomorphised this chatbot in their assessment of the case around Tay. This view is so widespread that we can identify it as a certain typical cognitive distortion or bias. This study presents a summary of facts concerning the Tay case, collaborative perspectives from eminent experts: (1) Tay did not mean anything by its morally objectionable statements because, in principle, it was not able to think; (2) the controversial content spread by this AI was interpreted incorrectly—not as a mere compilation of meaning (parroting), but as its disclosure; (3) even though chatbots are not members of the symbolic order of spatiotemporal relations of the human world, we treat them in this way in many aspects.

Społeczno-prawny aspekt materiałów erotycznych i pornograficznych przed 1939 rokiem. Walka z nielegalnymi wydawnictwami na przykładzie Warszawy

<p>Artykuł prezentuje nasilenie się zjawiska występowania erotycznych i pornograficznych wydawnictw na przełomie XIX i XX wieku oraz jego odbiór. Opracowanie podejmuje się także przedstawienia wybranych aktów prawnych wymierzonych w producentów i dystrybutorów kontrowersyjnych treści – w tym ustaleń międzynarodowych konferencji, prawa zaborców oraz polskich regulacji z okresu międzywojennego wraz ze stosownymi instrukcjami dla urzędników. W kolejnej części opracowania poruszono odbiór pornografii przez część opinii publicznej. Celem niniejszego tekstu jest również przedstawienie na podstawie źródeł prasowych, archiwalnych oraz literatury przedmiotu występowania tego problemu na terenie Warszawy, w tym również identyfikacji osób zamieszanych w niemoralne działania. Przeprowadzone badania ukazały, że na przestrzeni lat zmieniał się odbiór tego zjawiska, na co wpływ miało również to, że nie było ono jednoznacznie zdefiniowane. Było to również utrudnienie dla legislatorów, lecz nie powstrzymywało funkcjonariuszy służb porządkowych, którzy podejmowali się działań mających na celu aresztowanie osób zaangażowanych w ten proceder, również recydywistów.</p>

Gender, power and emotions in the collaborative production of knowledge: A large-scale analysis of Wikipedia editor conversations

This paper studies the conversations behind the operations of a large-scale, online knowledge production community: Wikipedia. We investigate gender differences in the conversational styles (emotionality) and conversational domain choices (controversiality and gender stereotypicality of content) among contributors, and how these differences change as we look up the organizational hierarchy. In the general population of contributors, we expect and find significant gender differences, whereby comments and statements from women are higher-valenced, have more affective content, and are in domains that are less controversial and more female-typed. Importantly, these differences diminish or disappear among people in positions of power: female authorities converge to the behavior of their male counterparts, such that the gender gaps in valence and willingness to converse on controversial content disappear. We find greater sorting into topics according to their gender stereotypicality. We discuss mechanisms and implications for research on gender differences, leadership behavior, and conversational phenomena arising from such large-scale forms of knowledge production.

Of commissars, cults and conspiratorial communities: The role of countercultural spaces in “democracy hacking” campaigns

The goal of this article is to place the cultivation of virtual conspiratorial communities by prosecutors of influence operations within a theoretical structure of information warfare as “democracy hacking.” We join emerging scholarship in describing democracies as information systems wherein maintaining high standards for the quality, origination, credibility and perceived freedom of information in discourse is necessary for ensuring the moderating function of the whole. While the cyber attacks, data leaks and bot manipulation of social media that are the common focus of much analysis constitute the most visible efforts to spoof the function of mechanisms that ensure these standards, the success of each nevertheless depends on a strong foundation from which disruptive narratives can gain credibility in the public eye. Closed, conspiratorial communities are an essential part of this foundation. Such spaces are commonly characterized by cult-like discursive practices that discourage critical thought, “meme-ify” controversial content and encourage hostile rebuttal of external criticism. At the same time, platform and cross-platform opportunities for information dissemination without violation of the insular boundaries of such spaces provide unique possibilities for the spread of community narratives. Taken together, these dynamics amount to a dramatically improved ability to combat the moderating features of democratic systems. The study examines these dynamics with specific reference to the case of r/The_Donald and finds strong validity for the suggested framework.

Risks and Strategies of News Translation: A Case Study of Qingting English APP

English learning platforms in China are increasingly popular among students. More features are developed and a wide range of contents are included to serve the diverse need of English learners. Despite the increasing amount and diversity of contents, its quality varies. This research discusses some problems and strategies of news translation from English to Chinese. Samples are all taken from one English learning platform, Qingting English APP, with source text from news media such as VOA, CNN and BBC, and target text provided by the platform. These major problems emerged during our study: 1) Some contents involving ideological differences are not treated properly in translation; 2) Many complex informative sentences are poorly translated; 3) Source news are sometimes incorrectly transcribed, leading to mistaken translation. By analyzing some possible risks of the existing problems, this study, in light of the risk management framework, provided some applicable strategies to achieve better translation for learners using Qingting APP. Firstly, it is advisable to avoid the potential risks by omitting/ rewriting some extremely controversial content, or to transfer the risk to other sources than the platform by marking/labeling the strongly biased report. Secondly, domestication strategy is preferable in translating English complex sentences into Chinese since it minimizes the communication risk between translators and target learners. Thirdly, a responsible translator is advised to fix errors of the source audio/text to exactly comprehend the original news so as to reduce the uncertainty risk.

Digital Observation: An Analysis of Patriarchal Comments in the Web

Through the journey of the plurality of feminisms, we find ourselves today in the fourth wave, in which cyberactivism predominates, with feminist articulations going through the street/network axis. Thus, we sought to consolidate the arguments in defense of feminism from the analysis of the opposite reactions found online. The locus was the cyberspace itself, where comments were found in web news posts that contained controversial contents linked to themes worked out by feminism in their plurality. The qualitative approach was defined based on non-participant systematic observation and content analysis. Nine categories were extracted, including blaming the victim of violence, discrediting female accusations of violence, stigma of prostitution, social concept of Marianism, objectification of the female body, myth of female hysteria, myth of maternal love, sexual and reproductive rights, demerit the relevance of female representativeness, among other subjects. It has been found that chauvinism and misogyny are social reproductions engendered regardless of gender; whereas the demands on female behavior are mostly associated with an accusatory tone, with responsibilities reversed; that there is still the view that women do not have emancipatory capacity to achieve their successes and that, thus, they must take hold of what man has achieved from his privileges; that sexist attitudes are detrimental to society as a whole and not only to women and; Thus, most of society still does not understand the relevance of female representativeness in the various spaces.

David vs. Goliath in the Digital Age: The Effect of Network Structure and Content on the Adoption of Cultural Products

Social media platforms have transformed the way with which communication among industry players and relevant audiences can influence adoption of a cultural product. Using Twitter conversations regarding eBooks sold on Amazon.com between 2014 and 2015, this paper studies how producers in the U.S. publishing industry benefit differentially from Twitter network structure and contents. We find that generalists such as the Big Five publishers gain advantage from controversial contents that appeal to the general public whereas peripheral specialists such as indie publishers benefit from network redundancy and consensus of opinion within niche communities. By finding how producers targeting different audiences benefit from online network structure and content, we explore different strategies with which respective players can leverage social media platforms and accrue competitive advantage.

Curadoria: arte de narrar

A Revista ARA FAU USP expõe neste número o esforço integrado entre membros de Conselho Editorial, Grupo Museu/Patrimônio, autores, que se submeteram e foram selecionados por Pareceristas, desta maneira gerando elo bastante singular e composto por estudiosos da área. O tema escolhido para esta edição – Curadoria, Argumento, Fricção – reside em analisar inúmeras experiências e variações, provenientes de distintas fontes. Congregam-se textos inéditos em diálogo com conteúdos controversos neste período, a demandar debates aqui apresentados.

Brand safety: the effects of controversial video content on pre-roll advertising

Newspapers have reported instances of famous brands' ads running as pre-rolls to terrorist videos on YouTube. Subsequent brand safety fears have led to advertisers pulling their YouTube ads. This study, a lab experiment, tested the effects of program quality and content—particularly violent, sexual or extremist content—on pre-roll ads. The experiment used measures from studies showing significant broadcast TV content effects on mid-roll advertising, using more extreme cable TV content to increase the chances of finding significant effects on pre-roll ads. Overall, the effects were minimal, with no effects on brand attitudes, ad liking, or three ad memory components—encoding, storage, and retrieval. In contrast to research showing program context effects on mid-roll advertising, context effects (e.g., on brand safety) do not seem an issue for pre-roll ads. A brand's reputation might suffer negative effects from pre-roll advertising in other ways, however. A limitation is that this study did not re-test the effects of controversial content on mid-roll advertising.

Bigg Boss: Means Versus Ends

ABSTRACT So far eleven series of Bigg Boss have garnered huge television rating points making it a profitable endeavour for all those involved. Despite that the show has claimed its unique space among several Hindi general entertainment channels, it has been criticized for its controversial contents, posing several questions on psychological safety and ethicality of means used to achieve successful business ends. Showing a disclaimer at the beginning of each show may suffice legal needs but what about the ethical ones?

Политические компоненты национальной идеи образования в России: противоречия в содержании

Политические компоненты национальной идеи образования в России: противоречия в содержании

‘…But have you Read this?’: Dialogicity in Robert Thornton’s Holy Name Devotions

This article examines a particular set of texts in an early fifteenth-century religious anthology composed by the Yorkshire gentleman Robert Thornton. Together with other religious prose and verse, Thornton copied a number of Middle English and Latin texts, on the subject of devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus, into the folios of what is now Lincoln Cathedral MS 91. The article demonstrates the uniqueness of this set of Holy Name texts in late medieval England, both in terms of individual items and the combination of material. Some of these texts, namely those written by the English mystic Richard Rolle, were controversial in their treatment of the Name of Jesus, and contained claims for which some of Rolle’s followers were criticised by the early fifteenth century. I argue that their controversial content does not easily accord with scholarly characterisations of Thornton’s collecting impulses as conservative and spiritually unambitious. The article also discusses how Thornton copied other, more conservative, statements, that aimed to control Rollean Holy Name enthusiasm; in this case by that other great English mystical writer, Walter Hilton. I argue that this juxtapostion of enthusiastic and cautious statements points to practices of compilation and religious reading that were profoundly dialogic, bringing contradictory material together for use by Thornton’s household in their daily devotions that opened up a range of possible practices. Examination of the other religious texts within Lincoln MS 91 suggests some likely responses to the Holy Name material that Thornton copied. The article finishes with discussion of Thornton’s literary networks and how the diaologic nature of his literary practices would have involved complex social relationships with a range of clerical and lay agents. It asks how Thornton’s own agency might have worked in collaboration with clerical advisers who sought to guide, but did not control, his reading.

Criterios para el análisis de la calidad televisiva y el sensacionalismo en los programas de entretenimiento

Este artículo analiza la definición y las variables propias de la calidad televisiva en los programas de entretenimiento, con el objetivo de analizar la televisión sensacionalista. Las investigaciones sobre calidad televisiva ponen de manifiesto, tanto en Europa como en los Estados Unidos, la dificultad a la hora de elaborar criterios comunes aplicables al análisis o, incluso, adecuarlos para definir la calidad televisiva. Se trata de un ámbito donde la mayor parte de los estudios se dirigen a la investigación de la audiencia o se centran en abordar la calidad del sistema televisivo en su totalidad, prestando poca atención al análisis de los criterios que la definen. Los resultados de esta investigación reflejan que los valores de calidad se sustituyen por la copia de formatos, la vulneración de los derechos democráticos, la escasa diversidad, los contenidos polémicos, la distorsión de la realidad y el auge de las noticias de escasa trascendencia.

Análisis comparativo de las resoluciones emitidas por el tribunal de justicia de la unión europea y el instituto federal de acceso y protección de datos respecto del motor de búsqueda gestionado por Google y la protección de datos personales

In January 2015, the Mexican agency in charge of assuring the correct use and exercise of the data protection rights, known as Instituto Federal de Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos, answered a request from a citizen to protect his right of erasure and his right to object personal data processing, in this case against Google Mexico. To solve this case, the agency used as a reference the decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union of 13 May 2014 (Google Spain v AEPD and Mario Costeja). Due to the controversial content of such case, concerning freedom of speech and the right to information, it is highly relevant to ask whether its use as a guideline was pertinent. For this matter, this article makes a comparative analysis between both cases in order to establish their legal and contextual similarities and differences.

Un Cynique à la cour : La collaboration de Giovan Marco di Parma avec l’atelier des Rapicano dans le scriptorium royal de Naples

Giovan Marco di Parma, known as Cinico, occupies a special place in the Library of the Aragon in Naples in the 15th century. Scribe, he has ties of friendship with many humanists of the court, and even participates in the establishment of the printing press in Naples. His philosophical position, claiming Cynicism, earned him the admiration of his contemporaries and a great freedom in relation to administrative constraints. His philosophical commitment also pushes him to favor copies of history or political books. However, even if he is stoic, Giovan Marco fits perfectly into the courtesan life of his time. His collaboration with the great illuminateur Rapicano, shows thes ties between writing and painting in building an ideal portrait of the royalty. He even tries to soften the harshness of the king towards the barons by becoming author of miscellanea with partly controversial content.

Teaching controversial issues in a fragile democracy: defusing deliberation in Israeli primary classrooms

Teaching through controversial, politically charged issues is promoted in Anglo-American democracies as a key means for cultivating active citizenry and democratic values. However, the challenges of discussing controversial issues in the classroom may differ in younger, deeply divided democracies that lack common ground and institutional stability. In this study we ask, what approaches to the teaching of controversial issues do Israeli teachers adopt while enacting a curricular unit concerning Israel’s founding fathers? The data were collected in an ethnographic study in two primary schools during the 2012–2013 school year. We use linguistic ethnographic methods to analyse the curricular materials and their enactment in four video-recorded lessons in three classrooms. We argue that while the curriculum addresses deeply controversial content, it is designed to inculcate a shared national ethos and therefore avoids controversy. In practice, teachers and students engaged with controversial issues, but in ways that defused their volatility. We highlight two heretofore undocumented approaches to controversial issues: (1) sidestepping controversy by stripping it of real world complexities, and (2) scholasticizing the discussion by focusing on literacy practices. Finally, we discuss the rationales for using these two approaches to defuse controversy in the classroom, and their limitations.

Melfi’s Choice: Morally Conflicted Content Leads to Moral Rumination in Viewers

ABSTRACTThis study investigates if morally conflicted and controversial content, which is often denounced as morally desensitizing, may play an important role in leading to moral rumination in viewers. The results of a quasi-experiment reveal that moral rumination was predicted by transportation into the narrative and was related to increased appreciation for the episode. The results support the notion that media potentially function as a “morality sandbox” in which to play with or test out moral concerns, even regarding controversial and violent content.

I’ll laugh, but I won’t share

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate the experience of darkness on people’s evaluation of humorous taboo-themed ads and their willingness to share these ads digitally with others.Design/methodology/approachMultiple studies are conducted to demonstrate the connection between darkness and humor. Another experiment was conducted to investigate people’s willingness to share taboo-themed ads.FindingsThe results demonstrate that people in dark settings (vs light) found controversial, taboo-themed ads to be more humorous. Three studies demonstrate that people in the dark (vs light) condition found taboo-themed ads to be more humorous. More importantly, despite finding taboo-themed ads to be more humorous, people in dark settings (vs light) were less inclined to share these ads on social media platforms.Practical implicationsWhen using humorous taboo-themed ads, advertisers are encouraged to show these ads in dark settings. If the physical environment is uncontrollable, marketers may still benefit by cueing consumers about darkness (e.g. through their products) or reminding them of nightly activities which may also yield similar effects. However, the cautionary tale is that, although people in the dark may enjoy these ads, they may not be willing to share it with others.Originality/valueMarketers utilize taboo-themed ads to increase consumer interest. Despite its controversial content, darkness enhances people’s evaluation toward these taboo-themed ads. However, if one of the goals of advertisers is to create an ad that is amenable to sharing, developing a humorous taboo-themed ad may not be the most rewarding strategy.

The Influence of Media Type on the Third Person Effect

Although in the last three decades many works have been devoted to the study of Davison’s (1983) Third-Person Effect (TPE) for a great variety of media contents, as far as we know none of them has explored the presumed impact of media type on the magnitude of the effect. The objective of this study is to compare the magnitude of the TPE for news, advertising, violence and pornography on TV and the Internet, and its behavioral consequences for controversial contents. The study shows that media type has an impact on the TPE for news, advertising and pornography, but not for violent content. On the contrary, it shows that there is not a clear relationship between media type and people’s willingness to support the limitation of controversial contents, such as violence and pornography.

Agonistic, Convivial, and Conceptual Aesthetics in New Social Design

This paper explores aesthetics in what it calls new social design. It asks, “How can designers work with aesthetics when the main design object is social, and traditional object-bound aesthetic concepts lose their validity.” It describes three approaches to aesthetics: agonistic, which sees aesthetics as a way to lure people to interact with controversial content; convivial, which finds aesthetics in community interactions; and conceptual, which does away with aesthetics. All these have precedents in art.