Burden of Choice

JONATHAN COHN is an assistant professor at the University of Alberta in Canada.

"Suffused with nuance and aplomb, Jonathan Cohn's The Burden of Choice details the asymmetries of power and disputed logics of contemporary algorithmic culture—an outstanding contribution to digital studies."— John Cheney-Lippold, author of We Are Data: Algorithms and The Making of Our Digital Selves"Algorithmic recommendations aren't politically neutral. But, as Cohn details in this illuminating book, nor is their power absolute. The Burden of Choice is a primer on algorithmic dissidence, couched in a history of computational decision making."— Ted Striphas, author of The Late Age of Print: Everyday Book Culture from Consumerism to Control"Fascinating and timely, this exciting book explores the history of algorithms, recommendations, and suggestions."— Chuck Tryon, author of On-Demand Culture: Digital Delivery and the Future of Movies"Google's algorithms discriminate against women and people of colour," by Jonathan Cohn— The Conversation"Tired of Those Netflix and Amazon 'Recommendations'? Outwit the Algorithm," by Rebecca Dolanhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/tired-of-those-netflix-and-amazon-recommendations-outwit-the-algorithm-11562776566?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=1— Wall Street Journal"In navigating the terrain of user agency and its subversive potential, this book adds another dimension to the literature on critical information studies."— Television and New Media"In navigating the terrain of user agency and its subversive potential, this book adds another dimension to the literature on critical information studies."— Television and New Media"Algorithmic recommendations aren't politically neutral. But, as Cohn details in this illuminating book, nor is their power absolute. The Burden of Choice is a primer on algorithmic dissidence, couched in a history of computational decision making."— Ted Striphas, author of The Late Age of Print: Everyday Book Culture from Consumerism to Control"Suffused with nuance and aplomb, Jonathan Cohn's The Burden of Choice details the asymmetries of power and disputed logics of contemporary algorithmic culture—an outstanding contribution to digital studies."— John Cheney-Lippold, author of We Are Data: Algorithms and The Making of Our Digital Selves"Google's algorithms discriminate against women and people of colour," by Jonathan Cohn— The Conversation"Fascinating and timely, this exciting book explores the history of algorithms, recommendations, and suggestions."— Chuck Tryon, author of On-Demand Culture: Digital Delivery and the Future of Movies"Tired of Those Netflix and Amazon 'Recommendations'? Outwit the Algorithm," by Rebecca Dolanhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/tired-of-those-netflix-and-amazon-recommendations-outwit-the-algorithm-11562776566?mod=searchresultspage=1pos=1— Wall Street Journal

• ContentsIntroduction: Data Fields of Dreams1          A Brief History of Good Choices2          Female Labor and Digital Media:  Pattie Maes and the Birth of Recommendation Systems and Social Networking Technologies 3          Mapping the Stars:  TiVo, Netflix, and Digg's Digital Media Distribution and Talking Back to Algorithms4          Love's Labor's Logged: The Weird Science of Matchmaking Systems and Its Parodies5          The Mirror Phased: Virtual Cosmetic Surgeries, Beautification Engines, and the Embodied RecommendationConclusion:  On Handling Toddlers and Structuring the Limits of KnowledgeAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex