Moral and cultural panics about what the future is going to bring is… well, it’s just part of the human condition. Just like every generation thinks the one that came before it is out of touch, and the one that comes after it is bringing about the destruction of the world, people are prone to panic over whatever comes next.
Nowhere is this more obvious than the rapidly progressing world of technology. With Artificial Intelligence making massive advancements and social media being blamed for almost everything that ails society, there is no shortage of people wringing their hands about the possible harm of such tech.
Shoshana Weissman from R Street Institute joined me to talk about this cultural panic — which is quickly turning into a regulatory rush among lawmakers. More importantly, we engage one of the most overlooked aspects of all these worrisome, frightening and potentially-job-killing technologies:
Why are they so awesome?
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The moral (and political) panic over technology