Post by barb43 on Apr 16, 2023 4:31:02 GMT
Inside the newest version of linguistic subterfuge
A linguistic arms race is raging online – and it isn’t clear who’s winning.
On one side are social networks like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. These sites have become better and better at identifying and removing language and content that violates their community standards.
Social media users are on the other side, and they’ve come up with coded terminology designed to evade algorithmic detection. These expressions are collectively referred to as “algospeak.”
New terms like these are just the latest development in the history of linguistic concealment. Typically, such codes have been employed by small groups. Given the reach of social media, however, algospeak has the potential to more broadly influence everyday language.
Due to the sheer volume of posted content, social media platforms use algorithms to automatically flag and remove problematic material. The goal is to reduce the spread of misinformation as well as to block content considered offensive or inappropriate.
But those who repeatedly run afoul of a site’s policies may find that their posts have been downranked or made less visible – a process called shadow banning. And repeated violations can lead to a temporary or permanent suspension.
To get past content filters, social media users are making use of coded language instead of the banned terms.
A history of hidden language
Although circumventing content filters is a relatively new phenomenon, the use of coded terms to conceal one’s meaning is not.
For example, the 19th-century Russian satirist Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin made use of “Aesopian,” or allegorical, language. He and others used it to circumvent censorship in Tsarist Russia. For example, the forbidden term “revolution” would be replaced with a phrase like “the big job.”
Many subcultures have developed their own private codes that are only really understood by in-group members. These are referred to by a variety of names, such as argot, cant or slang.
. . . And the article goes on with a number of examples. The bulk of the article is light and interesting, worth the few minutes it takes to read it.
The ending is excellent:
theconversation.com/what-is-algospeak-inside-the-newest-version-of-linguistic-subterfuge-203460?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter
A linguistic arms race is raging online – and it isn’t clear who’s winning.
On one side are social networks like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. These sites have become better and better at identifying and removing language and content that violates their community standards.
Social media users are on the other side, and they’ve come up with coded terminology designed to evade algorithmic detection. These expressions are collectively referred to as “algospeak.”
New terms like these are just the latest development in the history of linguistic concealment. Typically, such codes have been employed by small groups. Given the reach of social media, however, algospeak has the potential to more broadly influence everyday language.
Due to the sheer volume of posted content, social media platforms use algorithms to automatically flag and remove problematic material. The goal is to reduce the spread of misinformation as well as to block content considered offensive or inappropriate.
But those who repeatedly run afoul of a site’s policies may find that their posts have been downranked or made less visible – a process called shadow banning. And repeated violations can lead to a temporary or permanent suspension.
To get past content filters, social media users are making use of coded language instead of the banned terms.
A history of hidden language
Although circumventing content filters is a relatively new phenomenon, the use of coded terms to conceal one’s meaning is not.
For example, the 19th-century Russian satirist Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin made use of “Aesopian,” or allegorical, language. He and others used it to circumvent censorship in Tsarist Russia. For example, the forbidden term “revolution” would be replaced with a phrase like “the big job.”
Many subcultures have developed their own private codes that are only really understood by in-group members. These are referred to by a variety of names, such as argot, cant or slang.
. . . And the article goes on with a number of examples. The bulk of the article is light and interesting, worth the few minutes it takes to read it.
The ending is excellent:
And at least some algospeak terms will inevitably spill over into vocabulary used offline.
After all, coded language survives because it is useful. Such terms can, for example, function as dog whistles to taunt one’s political opponents.
Let’s Go Brandon, anyone?
After all, coded language survives because it is useful. Such terms can, for example, function as dog whistles to taunt one’s political opponents.
Let’s Go Brandon, anyone?
theconversation.com/what-is-algospeak-inside-the-newest-version-of-linguistic-subterfuge-203460?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter