TechTank

Latest Episodes:

Can AI Developers Be Incentivized to Debias their Algorithms? Oct 03, 2022

Show notes

The prevalence and technical relevance of machine learning algorithms have increased over the years, making predictive decision-making tools part of the everyday lives of online users. Today, it is harder to discern what decisions are made by humans, and the others that rely upon the cognition of machines. On this new episode of the Tech Tank podcast, Darrell West is joined by Nicol Turner Lee, Senior Fellow and the Director of the Center for Technology Innovation who explores the need for a proposed Energy Star rating, or incentive-based rating system to improve the performance and optimization of these online tools.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Undersecretary Xochitl Torres-Small on expanding access to rural broadband Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

On this episode of TechTank, host Nicol Turner Lee is joined by Undersecretary Xochitl Torres Small.

Together, they discuss the administration’s ongoing work to close the urban-rural digital divide, how IIJA

funding has helped the USDA expand programs such as the ReConnect program, and how the USDA has

been working to meet different communities’ hyperlocal needs.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you know where your spectrum is? The U.S.’s never- ending quest for more bandwidth Sep 06, 2022

Show notes

Spectrum policy has been essential in determining how to encourage communications technology

development, while ensuring equitable access. On TechTank, Nicol Turner Lee, Andrew Von Ah, Shane

Tews and Kathleen Burke discuss pressing topics in spectrum policy and interrogate if the lack of

available spectrum will be a dealbreaker in closing the digital divide.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The weaponization of information threatens American democracy. What should we do about that? Aug 22, 2022

Show notes

On TechTank, Samantha Lai and Darrell West discusses his most recent book, “Power Politics: Trump and the Assault on American Democracy.” Together, they contend with how the weaponization of information threatens American democracy, and what could be done to protect it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How does tech policy fall short in protecting people with disabilities? Aug 08, 2022

Show notes

On TechTank, guest host Samantha Lai is joined by Lydia X.Z. Brown, Alex Engler and Henry Claypool to

discuss how people with disabilities are affected by existing technologies. They investigate issues with

privacy, AI bias, surveillance technology and more, and consider what is needed to rectify these wrongs.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How does the internet facilitate worsening gun violence? Jul 25, 2022

Show notes

Not a single week of 2022 has passed without multiple mass shootings. 343 people have been killed

and 1,391 injured through July 4th of this year. On TechTank, host Dr. Nicol Turner Lee, Carol Graham and

Darrell West examine the role social media has played in past mass shootings and look into how the

public has reacted online to prospects of gun legislation and rising political polarization in the US.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do we center equity in the future of telehealth? Jul 11, 2022

Show notes

Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, emergency orders and pandemic-era flexibilities for telehealth are quickly expiring, thus ending the many conveniences of telehealth that people benefited from. On TechTank, Samantha Lai is joined by Nicol Turner Lee and Niam Yaraghi to discuss their forthcoming research paper on the future of telehealth, “The roadmap to telehealth efficacy: care, health, and digital equities.”

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Americans finally see bipartisan federal privacy legislation? Jun 27, 2022

Show notes

On TechTank, host Nicol Turner Lee is joined by Cameron Kerry and Jennifer King to discuss the current bipartisan and bicameral draft of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act and whether the U.S. can soon expect national legislation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exploring the intersection of tech policy and LGBTQ+ rights Jun 13, 2022

Show notes

This year’s Pride Month comes at a difficult time for LGBTQ+ rights. Over the past year, there have been over 300 anti-LGBTQ bills proposed in at least 28 states, including Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill that aims to limit LGBTQ+ discussion in schools, and a bill in Ohio that would ban transgender women from participating in high school and college athletics that includes a “verification process” of checking the genitals of those accused of being transgender.

On TechTank, Samantha Lai, guest host and research assistant at the Center for Technology Innovation, is joined by David Johns, executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition, and Chris Wood, executive director and co-founder of LGBT Tech, to discuss how technology concerns surrounding privacy, content moderation, facial recognition, and more shape the online experiences of the LGBTQ+ community.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Deciphering the Metaverse May 30, 2022

Show notes

There’s been a lot of hype surrounding the concept of the Metaverse, but questions surrounding issues of privacy, security, virtual content moderation, the sale of virtual goods, and data ownership remain. On TechTank, host Darrell West is joined by Tom Wheeler and Katherine Cross to discuss the Metaverse and what issues it raises for consumers and businesses.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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