We can’t talk about the use of digital technologies and platforms such as social media without discussing the algorithms that are operating behind the scenes to make it all happen. During my exploration of how Indigenous content creators share their identities through the use of these platforms, I came across a few new terms. These terms are related to algorithms and their impacts and and extend beyond the commonly known term of algorithmic bias. These terms and their definitions highlight some of the advantages and disadvantages of social media.
Algorithmic Folklore: describes the strategies TikTok users employ to crack the algorithmic black box and deduce what will deliver viral success.
Algorithmic Gossip: is an example of peer-to- peer research where creators collaborate on cracking the code of the algorithmic black box.
Strategic Knowledge: is a users deliberate engagement tactics with social media platforms to feed algorithms information in order to specify which content the algorithm should populate on a users feed.
Strategic Ignorance: by carefully choosing what tech companies don’t know about their users, they fail to protect the health and well-being of adolescents and other users on their platforms.
The Identity Strainer Theory: describes when users believe an algorithm filters out and suppresses certain social identities.
Algorithmic Privilege: is held by users positioned to benefit from algorithms on the basis of their identities.
Algorithmic Representational Harm: the harm users experience when they lack algorithmic privilege and are subjected to algorithmic symbolic annihilation.
Terms have been derived from:
https://www.regs2riches.com/p/-tiktok-on-reconciliation
https://points.datasociety.net/strategic-knowledge-6bbddb3f0259
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Nadia-Karizat/publication/355400840_Algorithmic_Folk_Theories_and_Identity_How_TikTok_Users_Co-Produce_Knowledge_of_Identity_and_Engage_in_Algorithmic_Resistance/links/61704271750da711ac5d3665/Algorithmic-Folk-Theories-and-Identity-How-TikTok-Users-Co-Produce-Knowledge-of-Identity-and-Engage-in-Algorithmic-Resistance.pdf