Each year, the Brown Institute sponsors talks that explore the intersection between media and technology. This year we have three virtual presentations lined up, each challenging us to think about data and computation in new ways. Johanna Drucker starts the series by looking at alternatives to representing time — looking beyond graphic standards such as clock time and calendar dates presented on an x-axis. Catherine D’Ignazio and Lauren Klein will then look at the production of data itself, examining how feminist thinking can reframe and suggest more ethical and equitable data practices. Finally, given numerous critiques of algorithms and their potential harm, Rediet Abebe considers instead how we might apply the strengths of computational work in the service of social change. Each talk is by researchers outside of journalism, and yet we have a great deal to learn from their approaches to data and computation.
Local Time: A Challenge for Visualization
Johanna Drucker, UCLA
October 30, 2020 from 11am-12:30pm PT / 2-3:30pm ET
Data Feminism
Catherine D’Ignazio, MIT and Lauren Klein, Emory University
December 4, 2020 from 11am-12:30pm PT / 2-3:30pm ET
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Roles for Computing in Social Justice
Rediet Abebe, Harvard and UC Berkeley
January 22, 2021 from 11am-12:30 PT/ 2-3:30pm ET
Register to Attend
A full listing of lectures and events can be found on our events page.