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THE VIDEO SHELF · algorithmic manipulation

We're building a dystopia just to make people click on ads | Zeynep Tufekci

Technosociologist Zeynep Tufekci argues that the machine-learning systems used to serve ads also decide what political and social information people see. She explains how opaque algorithms can nudge, segment and manipulate users, and warns that the real danger is powerful people using AI to control populations.

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Why HN readers recommended it

HN commenters cite it whenever engagement-optimizing feeds, micro-targeting or ad infrastructure come up, as an accessible warning about algorithmic amplification.

This is a summary from the source dataset, not an endorsement by Hacker News or the video creator.

Video & recommendation details

Creator / channel
TED
Topic
algorithmic manipulation
Format
talk
Level
general
HN recommenders in dataset
6
HN mentions in dataset
9
Recommendation years in dataset
2017–2026

These counts and years describe the included Hacker News records; they are not YouTube views or the video’s publication date.

From the original HN conversations

Excerpts from the recorded comments. Follow each source for the full comment and surrounding discussion.

  • uBlock team is the modern times heroes fighting the good fight for us. Thanks to them I've been navigating the web with peace of mind for a long time. Sometimes I find myself thinking how our lives would be if couple of guys didn't build …

    kaizenb on Hacker News · 2026-08
    In uBlock Origin Is Giving Up the Fight to Keep Ads Off Facebook

  • you may have seen it but there is a really scary Ted talk suggesting that it's possible Facebook is using deep learning techniques to optimize for engagement and they have no idea why it picks what it picks but it's possible making people choose sides …

    greggman on Hacker News · 2017-12
    In A friend of mine died and I didn't know because of algorithms

  • This comment is highly understating the power of social media micro-targeting by dubbing it as buying a few ads on FB and running twitterbots. I would request you to check out the Ted talk by Zeynep Tufekci ( [VIDEO] ) to get a sense of …

    redux13 on Hacker News · 2018-02
    In The FBI, CIA and NSA say American citizens shouldn't use Huawei phones

Summaries, classifications and recommendation records are from the HackerTube source dataset. Read about this library and its limitations.

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