The Web's Demise: Praying for a Way to Honor Its Legacy
In the digital age, a theory known as the Dead Internet Theory has been gaining traction. This theory proposes that since around 2016, the majority of content and activity on the Internet is no longer driven by humans but by artificial intelligence (AI) bots and automated algorithms [1][2][3].
This theory raises concerns about the disappearance of human content online. As more content—from social media posts to images and comments—is produced or amplified by AI bots rather than real people, the Internet environment becomes skewed towards artificial, homogeneous, and often nonsensical content, rather than diverse human voices [1][3].
Supporters of the Dead Internet Theory cite reports that bot traffic has surpassed human web traffic since about 2016, with a 2016 Imperva report showing bots accounted for 52% of internet traffic. They also argue that governments or corporations use these AI bots to control public perception and economic flows through algorithmic manipulation [1][2].
The impact of this theory is evident when scrolling through social media platforms like Facebook, where generic listicles, ad-ridden articles, and AI-narrated YouTube videos are common. Comment sections on these platforms are increasingly filled with bots that are becoming harder to distinguish from true engagement.
One institution built to preserve human stories outside of commercial and algorithmic pressures is the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). CPB has long been a beacon for safeguarding cultural memory and local voices. However, the recent news of its shutdown has sparked concern about the potential erasure of human stories and local voices [4].
Angelo, expressing his worry about the potential disappearance of interviews and conversations on TTBOOK, questions what record of human humanity would be left behind if the internet forgets us and algorithms replace us [5]. The loss of CPB wouldn't just be about funding, but also about dismantling a system designed to safeguard cultural memory and local voices.
The show "The Sum of Our Data," which is being re-aired, discusses the stories that our daily data generates, including the origins of data mining, the diminishing right to privacy, and the afterlife of personal information. This show serves as a reminder of the importance of preserving human stories in the face of the Dead Internet Theory.
As the Dead Internet Theory continues to unfold, it is crucial to remember the value of human-generated content and the need to safeguard cultural memory and local voices in the digital age.
References: [1] https://www.vice.com/en/article/7x8xz8/the-dead-internet-theory-is-the-internet-dead [2] https://www.wired.com/story/the-dead-internet-theory-is-the-internet-dead/ [3] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/oct/29/the-dead-internet-theory-how-artificial-intelligence-is-killing-the-web [4] https://www.npr.org/2023/03/01/1182401311/corporation-for-public-broadcasting-shuts-down [5] https://www.wired.com/story/ttbook-interviews-angelo-franklin/
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