From Machines to Machinations: The Algorithm is the Message?
Ideas to reconsider the emergence of Generative Artificial Intelligence from classical communication theories.
In early October, the 2nd Digital Communication Congress took place at the Faculty of Journalism and Social Communication of the National University of La Plata.
My participation in the panel on “Algorithm, Artificial Intelligence, and Big Data” alongside Cynthia Ottaviano, Daniel Rosso, and Sebastián Novomisky provided an excellent opportunity to systematize ideas that I have been working on for some time, initially in presentation format and later organized for this article.
During the preceding weeks, as I reviewed various readings to design my presentation, I came across an interview with Carlos Scolari that served as a starting point for delving deeper into certain slides.
In a passage from the interview, Carlos asserted:
“In this case, the concept of hypermediation is a broad umbrella, much like that of mediation. Artificial intelligences (and generative ones in particular) can enter and be integrated into this theoretical and analytical framework. In that sense, as Martín-Barbero used to say, we have to ‘lose the object to win the process.’ We need to stop focusing on the technological thing, the technological toy, and pay close attention to the processes.”
This shift in focus allows us to analyze the phenomenon from another perspective and generate (new) questions to address it: What processes does Generative Artificial Intelligence modify (and will modify) in the field of communication and journalism? What ethical and social challenges arise in these processes? What other theoretical frameworks assist us in reflecting on this modification in the media ecosystem?
With this objective in mind, during the initial part of my presentation, I traversed fundamental concepts to comprehend the multiple dimensions of this technology. Subsequently, I endeavored to connect authors and classical communication theories that enable us to re/think AI from the present, establishing bridges to the past.
A synthesis in this regard involves engaging in a dialogue between the ideas of Marshall McLuhan and Jesús Martín Barbero within this novel scenario.
The Algorithm is the Message
In 1964, Marshall McLuhan published “Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man,” a book in which he introduced his famous phrase “The medium is the message.” This idea, innovative and provocative for its time, proposed that not only the content of media but also the form and the medium through which it is presented significantly influence the perception and understanding of the message. McLuhan argued that the medium itself was an integral part of the message, and its impact extended beyond the specific content being transmitted.
McLuhan’s work not only shook the foundations of media theory but also anticipated the emergence of the digital age and the globalization of communication. His focus on the “extensions of man” as a result of media foreshadowed the increasing integration of technology into everyday life and the perception of reality. The notion that media not only deliver information but also shape the human experience remains a crucial point of reflection in the study of communication and technology.
In “Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man,” McLuhan included a series of analogies and concepts that can be updated synthetically.”
The Medium is the Message
As I mentioned earlier, McLuhan argued that the medium in which information is presented has a significant impact on how the message is perceived and processed. In the era of Artificial Intelligence, the algorithm is the message; the way algorithms select, generate, and present content profoundly affects the perception and understanding of information.
The intersection between the medium and the message intensifies with the influence of algorithms, whose omnipresent power shapes our preferences, beliefs, and digital experiences. The subtlety with which algorithms adjust the presentation of content based on our interactions creates an environment where personalization becomes a determining factor in constructing our med(iá)tic reality.
The Fish in the Water
McLuhan used the analogy of the fish in the water to illustrate our relationship with media. The ubiquity of media allows them to be an intrinsic part of our cultural environment, and their impact often goes unnoticed most of the time.
The fish is unaware that it is in the water until taken out of it (removed from its environment), and the same happens to us with media. When the internet is cut off, Twitter goes down, or our mobile phones run out of battery, we are like that fish in the water McLuhan talked about.
In this new scenario, Artificial Intelligence also creates atmospheres, albeit synthetic ones. It has become an invisible but omnipresent component in our interaction with information and media.
The Global Village
McLuhan spoke of a “global village,” another of his most popular concepts, where communication technology shortened distances and connected people from around the world. With Generative AI, this global village expands even further, as technology enables instant translation, the generation of multilingual content, and distribution to a global audience in real-time.
Beyond the viralization of Lionel Messi speaking perfect English in a press conference, it’s interesting to assess such technological advancements for real-time translation of podcasts or multi-format journalistic content and its reach to new audiences. From the Global Village to the Hyper-Global Village.
Extensions of the Human Body
McLuhan viewed media as extensions of the body, with TV as an extension of human sight, radio as an extension of hearing, and not only did he talk about media but also argued that the shoe was an extension of the foot, and roads an extension of the shoe and foot.
Updating this idea, one could say that AI is an extension of the human intellect. Generative AI expands our cognitive and creative capacities, enabling the creation of content and new ways of decision-making. Just a few textual exchanges with ChatGPT are enough to experience this firsthand, the total democratization of the Turing Test.
From Machines to Machinations
In 1987, Jesús Martín Barbero published “From Media to Mediations: Communication, Culture, and Hegemony,” a key piece in the evolution of cultural studies in Latin America. His critical approach revolutionized conventional perceptions of the media by proposing the notion of mediations, highlighting the active interaction between the media and society. This shift in perspective significantly influenced the understanding of communication as a complex process rooted in social and political dynamics.
His work became essential in addressing the dimensions of cultural hegemony and power in the field of communication. His reflection on cultural mediations remains relevant, providing a valuable theoretical framework for understanding the production of meanings and the shaping of culture in the post-digital era.
Media and Generative Culture
AI is not just about technology; it represents a new form of cultural production. AI can generate original content, music, art, and texts, making it a cultural agent that influences the creation of meanings and the production of culture in the digital society.
In line with the call to “lose the object to gain the process,” the integration of generative AI into the cultural sphere redefines not only the nature of technology but also the process of meaning construction itself. This allows us to move away from a perspective focused on technology as an isolated object, suggesting that we should direct our attention to evolving cultural processes.
Mediations of AI
Artificial Intelligence integrates into people’s daily lives and into social, economic, and political dynamics through applications, intelligent systems, and platforms.
These mediations are crucial for understanding how AI impacts communication and human interactions, from a recommended video on TikTok that goes viral to a facial recognition system measuring employee productivity in Amazon warehouses.
Popular Culture and Algorithms
AI is in constant interaction with popular culture. Recommendation algorithms on streaming platforms, for example, shape popular culture by suggesting content to audiences, and conversely, popular culture influences AI by providing insights into usage, preferences, and profiles.
Barbero used to say that he was not so interested in what the media did to people but in what people did with the media. Currently, these processes converge, where our cultural consumption practices feed algorithms, enabling them to generate recommendations for new content. Infinite virtuous circles.
Hegemony and Synthetic Power
In the context of AI, the importance of technological hegemony and the control of technology companies over data, algorithms, and information distribution is emphasized. AI can be a tool for social control if its ethics and regulation are not properly addressed.
In this sense, it is crucial to consider not only the technology itself but also how technology companies, through their hegemony over data and algorithms, can exert significant control over the production and distribution of information. This poses ethical challenges and underscores the need for effective regulation to prevent potential risks of manipulation and social control.
The emergence of Generative AI not only redefines our relationship with technology but also recalibrates the processes of meaning construction, emphasizing the need for a holistic approach that considers not only technological efficiency but also the inherent complexities of communicative and cultural processes.
In this regard, the endeavor to establish connections between classical communication theories and synthetic technologies provides a conceptual analytical framework to comprehend the (multiple) transformations in a landscape that has evolved rapidly since the open launch of ChatGPT in late 2022.
Concepts such as “the medium is the message” and “cultural mediations” remain fundamental for contextualizing and gauging the revolution represented by Artificial Intelligence. Bridging the past and present underscores the importance of moving away from a focus on the technological object to embrace a deeper understanding of the processes that will be transformed in the near future.
Classical communication theories not only remain relevant but also enrich discussions about technology evolution, offering a (new) conceptual framework that broadens our understanding of the intersection between culture, communication, and Artificial Intelligence in the present.
