As part of the Fourth European Pragmatism Conference, August 2-5, at the University College London, Professor David Hildebrand organized a four-paper panel entitled “Philosophy, Technology, and Assaults on Democracy.” His contribution, “John Dewey and the Viability of Digital Democracies,” described how new combinations of technology are rewriting the ways democratic citizens reflect, converse, assemble, and inquire. Not only do new and sophisticated algorithms amplify emotion, but they can also distort perception of facts and major events (such as elections and vaccination efficacy). Among the solutions suggested were increased empathy for other perspectives and, critically, our personal ability to take a logical step back from automatic biases and assumptions.
University of Colorado Denver