Rear-View Mirror

Marshall McLuhan (our favorite techno-prophet here) and Quentin Fiore wrote this highly relevant observation in their 1967 book, The Medium Is The Massage:

I'm seeing this more and more in my personal experience, but also in other people's reactions to generative AI. Whether it's expressed as anger and frustration at work or reminiscing the "old days" when we used StackOverflow for code help and stock photo sites for imagery, there is a lot of tension that we as a society are dealing with due to this new phase. I certainly agree that we look to the most recent past when faced with something new, but I also wonder if we aren't doing it enough.

The last two years, I've been stunned by the lack of push-back from the general public against generative AI. That doesn't mean it's not there—quite the contrary—but the sentiment seems to be getting buried, even in my feeds where I'm actively pursuing AI-critical arguments in my content. Instead of thoughtful discussions about boundaries and appropriate usage (or anything else), I see fear-mongering statements or resigned messages:

• If you don't use AI, you'll be left behind.
• AI might not replace you, but you will be replaced by someone who uses AI.
• This is the next big thing, it's here to stay.
• Adapt or die.

This seems extreme to me, because as companies scramble to shove AI into everything: products, ads, workflows, tools, etc. it doesn't feel the same as previous technological "revolutions" I've lived through like the affordable personal computer, Google's search engine and the web 1.0, or social media. Instead of the gradual ramp up in adoption, it's felt more like getting hit over the head. Is it because the last 25 years have been defined by continuous change? Did we marketers finally succeed in our efforts to sell the "digital transformation" concept to the masses of companies out there, and therefore that trickled into the personal lives of the public? Are we all too distracted by all of the problems that our politicking has caused during this same period? Have we become desensitized to the novelty and nuance of new tech so that it still just looks the same or, at least, what we expect to see out of technology at this point?

Reflections

While we can use our "rear-view mirror" like a coping mechanism (and I suspect McLuhan and Fiore are somewhat critiquing this practice) I don't think we should reject it, either. Sure, there's nostalgia and the risk of abandoning agency in the current situation due to forever mourning the past (getting trapped in unhelpful thought patterns of "things were better when..."). There's also a certain clarity that comes with this practice: why were these previous things so impactful? What have we lost in the transition? What can we bring back? What should we avoid going forward? Are we on the same trajectory as we were before?

The contrast of previous tech and today's tech can help us re-evaluate what he have, where we are, and where we're going. This is active engagement that ultimately helps all of us draw boundaries where they need to be, rather than the obsequious acceptance of what the sales teams say.

In that spirit of reflection, we've covered some intense topics this quarter, from robotic representations and reinforcements of harmful gender roles; to considering the path to evil; to oppressive systems. These topics have raised lots of questions just for me, and I'd love to know what kind of questions have been raised for you.

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