The Big Tech Show
What is a recommender algorithm? Should they be switched off? And how do they create toxic narrative bubbles?
Johnny Ryan, digital rights campaigner and director of Enforce at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, joins Adrian on this week’s episode of The Big Tech Show.
Johnny explains that recommender systems operate by continuously monitoring users’ behaviour on digital platforms, such as what content they watch, pause or interact with. From this data, the system builds a profile of each user’s preferences and psychological triggers. It then curates a personalised feed of content predicted to maximise the user’s time on the platform.
You can listen to the full episode here, on the Irish Independent website or wherever you get your podcasts.
