The downside of Google's automated advertising targeted system manifested itself on the site IBN Live this week:
Google Ads for online training in terrorism appeared next to stories on the Mumbai Terror Attacks in two separate incidents.
Pete Cashmore writing for Mashable described this electronic faux pas as possibly the worst "slip up in recent memory".
It opens up interesting questions, for me, about the objectivity of technology and the boundaries of responsibility in aggregating content without placing value judgements on it.
Whilst terrorism is an extreme example of a behaviour few people would want to give a platform to: how does Google manage its responsibility to have no favourite cultures, beliefs or clients and yet not give a voice to unpopular or damaging content? This is the other end of the self-censorship problem in China.
This may all be a little too involved: most people just think the ad should have been spotted and removed.
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