As part of the
Artificial Intelligence Autumn Session #AIAS we are showing the documentary film THE CLEANERS - everyone interested is welcome.
Dir. Hans Block, Moritz Riesewieck, colour, 88 min., 2017, multilingual with English subtitles
Synopsis
The big Internet companies, not all which can properly be described "social media", are drowning in the unending flood of online content. From hate mail to pornography, from depictions of child abuse to manipulated war pictures used for propaganda, the necessity for preventive action is growing – if only to avoid damaging one's own public image. As a rule, however, this task is not normally performed by the corporations themselves: "outsourcing" is the cheapest solution as well as the most comfortable – and the contracted companies are also responsible for any corresponding mistakes. The result is that in Manila, for example, an untold number of poorly trained and quickly psychologically-impacted "moderators" sit long hours in front of their computer screens and, in accordance to highly schematic and American criteria, use the delete key to wage war against objectionable content on the Internet. The documentary focus of THE CLEANERS is primarily on the work they do, but also looks at the related debate in the USA.
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