Shaping The Algorithms That Personalise Your Media

University of Surrey ESRC Festival of Social Science 2021

"Shaping The Algorithms That Personalise Your Media"

30th November, 11:00-12:30

What is on offer?

With an estimated five smart devices for every person on the planet, personal data and media have never been so readily accessible. Yet our personal experience of media, including social media, is for the most part mediated by a small number of global tech corporations.

Joined by BBC R&D, this panel explores digital rights, human values, trust and decentralisation as directions to advance society's ability, our ability, to shape the algorithms that feed our media. The session will include presentations from speakers researching these themes and provide an opportunity for questions and discussion. It is hoped that their insights will enrich and inform a debate as part of society's ongoing conversation to design technologies for media personalisation that better serve the needs of society.

What's it about?

More and more data is available online, including our own personal data as our lives have become increasingly digital. Equally, the films, drama, music, news, sport and other entertainment we enjoy are in the throes of metamorphosis from broadcasting to streaming, leaving fixed physical media as the preserve of those with a special interest. With the booming global data economy, these create the conditions for new personalised services, including streaming platform recommendations, targeted advertising and social media. As well as the tech giants, governments and other industry sectors are waking up to the latent potential wealth in individuals' collective data. Regulation may help to curb injustices, but are there alternative ways for society to shape the way algorithms personalise the many forms of our media?

Who is leading the event?

Dr Philip Jackson, University of Surrey

Eleni Sharp, BBC Research and Development

Prof Sabine Braun, University of Surrey

Prof John Collomosse, University of Surrey

Dr Jack Stilgoe, UCL

Who is it open to?

Open to everyone.

Who will it be of interest to?

Anyone with an interest in digital media consumption and how we can best shape this for societal benefit in the future.

For more information about the ESRC Festival of Social Science 2021 and other events being delivered by the University of Surrey, please visit this website