#33 Info / Desinfo #MediaLiteracy&Disinformation. 7th March 2024
Monthly bulletin on media literacy, disinformation and regulation from the Ukrainian editorial team
Hello!
March 9 marks the 210th anniversary of the birth of the outstanding Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko, who symbolized the struggle for the Ukrainian people. They learn his poems in schools. Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine's leading university, is named in his honour as well as the alma mater of our editorial team.
Today, thanks to advances in technology and changing trends, prominent historical figures are becoming more accessible. Shevchenko even has his own Instagram page managed by artificial intelligence. In this month's issue, read about how prominent historical figures have a place in modern life.
Be sure to take a closer look at the illustration by our particular artist, Roni Milovanova. Leave us a comment if you liked her work — because we do!
Illustrator: Roni Milovanova
Taras Shevchenko is OK
NFT Shevchenko's Quantum Leap collection. Source: OpenSea.io
This is the title of a short story by Ukrainian postmodernist Yuriy Andrukhovych. Shevchenko is okay. And it is true. Andrukhovych, as well as the collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) "Shevchenko's Quantum Leap," which modernized the poet in different images: John Lennon, Gary Potter, Genie, and Spider-Man, are not just saying, they are shouting to us, "Stop standardizing Shevchenko!" Taras is in each Ukrainian. No matter how old you are or what gender or social status you are, Shevchenko is okay. And Shevchenko is in everyone.
Another way to modernize and bring outstanding personalities closer to modern society is new technologies.
Taras Shevchenko is on Instagram
At the end of 2023, the National Taras Shevchenko Museum and RAVATAR presented the first official Instagram page of the Taras Shevchenko AI. This social project promotes multifaceted Ukrainian art.
"Combining historical cultural achievements with modern innovations, today we are integrating the creative achievements of the Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko into the world of digital technologies," the National Museum team says.
Meta failures are not terrible for Shevchenko's AI page. Click here to follow a poet on Instagram and see what’s going on.
Not just follow but talk to
In addition to the fact that accounts of historical figures can already be found on social media, you can now even talk to them.
Many platforms offer to talk to artificial intelligence that pretends to be one of the historical figures. You can ask questions to Isaac Newton, Vincent Van Gogh, Marie Curie, and almost anyone else.
For example, the Deep AI platform offers the following categories of people: Historical, Billionaires, TV Shows, Sports, British Royal Family, and others.
Another AI platform, Humy, lets you share 1000+ historical figures and custom AI tutors with your students.
“Our AI-powered experiences offer users the chance to have conversations with those who have shaped our world and to gain insight into their lives, thoughts, and beliefs. Our AI-driven conversations provide an unparalleled learning experience, and it’s our goal to make this accessible to everyone. We want to open a window into the past and make it possible for everyone to learn from history in an engaging and meaningful way”, — say the creators of Humy.
Digital immortality and ethics issues
Ljubisa Bojic, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Philosophy and Social Theory at the University of Belgrade, says the industry is currently in a bit of a Wild West phase.
“When it comes to AI ethics. Nevertheless, it is becoming increasingly clear that we cannot afford to ignore the ethical implications of AI development”, adds Bojic.
Mark Laurence, who works as a Solution Enablement Manager in the U.K., names three reasons for the contradiction between "digital immortality" and ethics: consent, emotional exploitation, and data privacy.
Creating a virtual avatar would be considered a violation of personal autonomy. But how do you get permission to reproduce a deceased person in a digital format?
Regarding emotional exploitation, Laurence emphasizes that people who have lost their loved ones may find it difficult to move on due to the psychological pressure it causes.
"Creating a realistic avatar requires a lot of personal data. Who owns this data, and how is it protected? The risk of data leakage and unauthorized use is a serious issue that cannot be ignored," adds Mark Laurence.
Read all the thoughts of the London-based IT specialist here.
What to watch/read and listen to about digital immortality
Of course, we can't let you go without a selection of interesting take-outs on an equally exciting topic!
1. Virtually Human: The Promise-and the Peril-of Digital Immortality
Martine Rothblatt, PhD wrote the book in 2014. It is an excellent opportunity to compare the world's perception of technology and each person's digital footprint. In 2024, how this is affected by rapidly developing artificial intelligence – 10 years is a good time retrospective for such an independent study.
2. A.artificial I.mmortality
This documentary explores the latest technological advances in artificial intelligence, robotics, and biotechnology and asks the question: Can AI enable us to live forever?
3. The False Promise of AI Immortality. It Could Happen Here
In a podcast titled “It Could Happen Here,” Garrison Davis tells Robert Evans about MindBank, an AI company trying to build a digital replica of you. They call it “a digital twin”. You can listen to it via Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
Editorial team: Kateryna Horska (Editor-in-chief), Anastasiia Kerpan (Head Editor), Roni Milovanova (Designer)