The Age of the Algorithm

99% Invisible

SiriusXM Podcasts and Roman Mars

Design, Arts

4.8 • 27.5K Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2017

⏱️ 21 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Computer algorithms now shape our world in profound and mostly invisible ways. They predict if we’ll be valuable customers and whether we’re likely to repay a loan. They filter what we see on social media, sort through resumes,

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is 99% invisible. I'm Roman Mars.
0:05.0	On April 9th, 2017, United Airlines Flight 3411 was about to fly from Chicago to Louisville
0:11.3	when flight attendants discovered the plane was overbooked.
0:14.0	They tried to get volunteers to get their seats with promises of travel vouchers and
0:18.3	hotel accommodations, but not enough people were willing to get off. United ended up calling some airport security officers.
0:28.0	United ended up calling some airport security officers.
0:30.0	They boarded the plane and forcibly removed a passenger named Dr David Dow.
0:35.0	The officers ripped Dow out of his seat and carried him down the aisle the airplane,
0:39.0	nose bleeding, while horrified onlookers shot video with their phones.
0:43.0	No, this is your dog.
0:45.0	Oh my God, look at what you did him!
0:48.0	Oh my-
0:50.0	You probably remember this incident
0:51.0	and the outrage it generated.
0:53.0	The international uproar continued over the force removal of a passenger from a United Airlines flight.
0:59.4	Today the Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz issued an apology saying, quote,
1:05.0	no one should ever be mistreated this way.
1:07.8	I want you to know that we take full responsibility.
1:11.4	But why Dr. Dow? How did he end up being the unlucky passenger that United decided to remove?
1:18.0	Immediately following the incident, some people thought racial discrimination may have played a part,
1:22.8	and it's possible that this played a role in how he was treated.
1:26.0	But the answer to how he was chosen was actually an algorithm,
	...

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