Moral Repair: A Black Exploration of Tech

Tech Companies and American Manufacturing have a history of booming and busting towns. The Big Question for this last episode of the season is, will this AI chip factory scheduled to open in a suburb just north of Syracuse, NY actually provide reasonable, sustainable increased quality of life, or will it be the latest iteration of the boom and bust cycle? Annanda and Keisha ask key Syracusans to find out. SHOW NOTESTalk to us at Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/moral-repair-podcast/ Syracuse   Syracuse Poverty info  From 2003 History of the Syracuse area’s Decline of manufacturing jobs – Brookings Institution  Carrier Corporation – why it left  Episode about Haudenosaunee  Bob Searing's Article https://www.syracuse.com/living/2022/10/back-to-the-future-cny-is-poised-to-return-to-a-familiar-role-as-a-hub-of-leading-edge-american-manufacturing.html Onondaga Historical Association cnyhistory.org  Micron  https://www.cnycec.org/ – Melanie Littlejohn is co-chair of the Central New York Community Engagement Committee for NY State’s Micron investment Melanie Littlejohn also is the CEO of the CNY Community Foundation. Here’s a video Environmental impact w/ map  Inside Micron Taiwan’s Semiconductor Factory | Taiwan’s Mega Factories EP1 What will Micron Technology mega computer chip fab look like in Central New York?

This Episode Annanda and Keisha Explore The Big Question of, is it worth the expense to go to Mars given the needs on Earth? And what would it be like to live on Mars or in space? They interview Kai Staats, Director of Research for SAM at the University of Arizona to get the space tea.

Keisha and Annanda talk to Sarah Nahar of Community Peacemaker Teams and Buddhist Peace Fellowship about technologies of public safety and conflict in the United States and how communities can organize themselves to repair the harms of oppression and policing. We look at the history and values of public safety in the USA, specific policing tech, and ways communities in and out of tech are responding.

How do the profits from Big Tech impact family farmers, food-ways and the environment in the United States? Annanda & Keisha talk to Jamie Fanous, Director of Policy for Community Alliance with Family Partners and Dr. Amina Darwish, the Associate Dean and Advisor for Muslim Life at The Office of Religious and Spiritual Life at Stanford University.SHOW NOTESWe’re excited to be live in Oakland on June 11 for a live in-person show at Kinfolx in the East Bay. Join us in person @4pm PST or online at, Making It: A Night of Big Questions! Sign up at Eventbrite  Community Alliance with Family Farmers  The Center for Biological Diversity’s take on California Forever Zakat Calculator  Talk to us on Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn. 

Always-on technology has amplified distraction and overwhelm, disconnection, and cultural polarization. What ancient and emerging tools can help us put tech in its rightful place? Keisha and Annanda talk to Judith Shulevitz and Joe Hollier about what can we learn from Sabbath traditions about community, connection, and thriving. SHOW NOTES Talk to us online: at Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/moral-repair-podcast/  We’ll be in Oakland, CA, for a live event on June 11. Stay tuned for details!  Zomorodi’s TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/manoush_zomorodi_how_boredom_can_lead_to_your_most_brilliant_ideas  Research on “technoference,” relationships, and quality of life: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2014-52280-001; tips from Psychology Today: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-squeaky-wheel/201501/how-cellphone-use-can-disconnect-your-relationship  Learn about the Light Phone: https://www.thelightphone.com/  Try a Tech Shabbat! Tiffany Shlain explains the principles in WIRED: https://www.wired.com/story/everything-you-need-to-enjoy-one-tech-free-day-a-week/  Tell us: What are the community spaces where you find rest with others?

It’s a major election year in American politics. This episode explores the big question, how is AI used in American political decision-making? What are the tools out there? How do they impact the political process? While this episode will not be political, it will touch on the evolution of political culture via AI and the impact it has the everyday person. Our episode features special guest, Cyber Security expert Bruce Schneier of the Harvard Kennedy School. Talk to us on Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn.  SHOW NOTES The whole cup of tea… The Guardian Interview with Christopher Wylie They are still going y’all! Chicago Festival for the Humanities Check Out Bruce’s Corner of the Internet! Bruce Schneier

What do we need to know about recent regulatory guidelines on AI trust and safety? What does one recent federal regulator think still needs attention? How could critical Black digital perspectives reshape the conversation? Annanda and Keisha talk Afrofuturism and equity with Dr. Alondra Nelson, deputy director for science and society at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from 2021-2023. SHOW NOTES Talk to us online: at Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/moral-repair-podcast/ The Social Text Afrofuturism issue: https://www.dukeupress.edu/afrofuturism-1 About the Black Panther’s clinics: https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/institutions-african-american-history/black-panther-partys-free-medical-clinics-1969-1975/“ “No Justice, No Health”: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12111-019-09450-w Nelson + Lander explain the AI Bill of Rights (WIRED) https://www.wired.com/story/opinion-bill-of-rights-artificial-intelligence/ How many medical tech advances came from HIV-AIDS research: https://www.princeton.edu/\~ota/disk2/1990/9026/902612.PDF

On Moral Repair: A Black Exploration of Tech, hosts Annanda Barclay and Keisha McKenzie talk with tech and wisdom leaders. Their conversations inspire curiosity about tech while showcasing practical wisdom from the African continent and diaspora to nurture wellbeing for all. Moral Repair expands mainstream tech narratives, celebrates profound insight from Black philosophy and culture, and promotes technology when it serves the common good. Listeners leave each episode with new ways to think about tech’s impacts and apply practical wisdom in their own lives.

Have you ever considered the moral dilemma of a hologram narrating someone's life story for them? We interview Otis Moss III about the interactive AI hologram of his father Civil Rights Leader Otis Moss Jr. showcased at the Maltz Museum in Ohio. We interview Public Theologian Zuogwi Earl Reeves on how the black wisdom of hip-hop plays a pivotal role in the moral repair of narrating our tales authentically. Tune into the episode and embark on this thought-provoking journey with us.

Nov 2023, Prime ads expected to “reach 115M viewers per month.” Aral Balkan (Small Tech Foundation): “We didn’t lose control. It was stolen.” Isabel Wilkerson’s Caste (2020) is now a film. Marjorie Kelly: Wealth Supremacy: How the Extractive Economy and Biased Rules of Capitalism Drive Today’s Crises. Marjorie with Laura Flanders (Dec 2023). Toni Morrison’s “A Humanist View”, The Source of Self-Regard (Knopf, 2019). Transcript and audio. Prof. Jeffrey Sachs at the United Nations Food Systems Pre-Summit, 2021. The wealth of one billionaire compared to average US household income ($65K). Techcrunch (June 2023): US intel confirms it purchases US citizens’ personal data. Prof. Shoshana Zuboff (Harvard Business School) defines surveillance capitalism. Wangari Maathai describes the Green Belt Movement in her 2004 Nobel Lecture. How emotions shape our identities, cultures, and societies: “The Cultural Politics of Emotion” (Sara Ahmed). “The Body Keeps The Score” (Bessel van der Kolk) educates on the impact of emotional pain and trauma on our physical bodies. “Whitey On The Moon”: Gil Scott-Heron on The Revolution Begins.

Join us for a holiday celebration episode on Moral Repair! We talk about our nostalgia around tech that brings up all the good feels. Tune in to find out who Annanda and Keisha deem the tech ghosts of holidays past, present and future. We’ve even pointed out this years Scrooge, Bob Crotchet, and Tiny Tim! Enjoy a special holiday nostalgia session, and join our discussion on the true tech meaning of this holiday season.

Tech companies have access to an immense amount of data about each of us. How are we all being affected in a world where no one can be anonymous? Keisha McKenzie and Annanda Barclay talk to data scientist Scott Hendrickson, PhD, about data and consent, ways colonialism shows up in tech development, and more cooperative ethics we can learn from nature. SHOW NOTES For the next episode: tell us about your nostalgic tech memories! Find us at @moralrepairpodcast on instagram, @moralrepair on Twitter/X, or moralrepairpodcast at gmail dot com How did Cambridge Analytica use 50M people’s Facebook data in 2016? (Knowledge Wharton) California bill makes it easier to delete online personal data (LA Times) “Churches target new members, with help from Big Data” (Wall Street Journal) In the film Enemy of the State, characters uncover all the ways they’re being tracked—it’s a lot. Digital safety for people seeking reproductive care (Digital Defense Fund) How redwood trees communicate (New York Times): “The Social Life of Forests” feat. Professor Suzzane Simard “Thieves Use Tech Devices to Scan Cars Before Breaking Into Them” NBC Bay Area Scott has recommended a few books for our audience: God Human Animal Machine: Technology, Metaphor, and the Search for Meaning by Meghan O’Gieblyn Impromptu: Amplifying our Humanity Through AI by Reid Hoffman The Battle for Your Brain: Defending the Right to Think Freely in an Age of Neurotechnology by Nita Farahany Prof. Alondra Nelson in “The New Norms of Affirmative Consent: Alondra Nelson on the New Yorker Radio Hour” Prof. Yvette Abrahams on social ecology ethics in “Thank You for Making Me Strong”

How has the American Dream transformed in the wake of the Great Recession? Annanda & Keisha examine the impact of the Great Recession on the American Dream focusing on the rise of Bitcoin and blockchain. Through the lens of bell hooks’ philosophical perspectives, they explore the deeper moral stakes. Featuring a captivating conversation with Adorable Earthangel, a web3 entrepreneur and spiritual technologist, who offers unique insights on how to navigate this new landscape. Work with our Guest Adorable Earthangel! bell hooks defines white supremacist capitalist patriarchy bell hooks shows the difference perspective makes in Black Looks: Race and Representation (1992). Some background on the history of the New Deal and the 2008 crash: How the New Deal Left Out African-Americans (Smithsonian) Codeswitch explains the history of housing discrimination and redlining  Economics Professor Richard Wolff (The New School) explains the 2008 subprime mortgage problem Investopedia breaks down on the AIG Bailout **In January 2021, the New York Times reported the Biden administration’s intent to include an image of Harriet Tubman in a redesigned $20 bill. Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder of FTX and Alameda Research, was found guilty of fraud and conspiracy after his crypto firm collapsed. He faces a lengthy prison sentence. Reuters reports (Nov 2023) The Income Gap, the US Department of Treasury marks Racial Inequality in the United States  Why the Great Recession Made Inequality Worse by Ken-Hou Lin and Megan Tobias Neely Explore more on the 53% loss of African-American Wealth During the Great Recession “The Color of Money” by Mehrsa Baradaran

Is it possible to control AI? If so, how can we make it more ethical? Damien Williams, PhD, a philosopher of science, technology, and society, has some ideas. Annanda and Keisha chat Marvel movies, Ultron’s bad manners, and what lessons machine learning could take from the world of plant medicine and harm reduction. SHOW NOTES NEW: Come talk to us on social media! We’re at @moralrepairpodcast on Instagram and @MoralRepair on X (Twitter). You can also reach us by email: moralrepairpodcast at gmail dot com The Verge surveys Americans on who’s using AI tools and what worries them (June 2023) A 2020 note in the Federal Register on how US border-crossing tech expanded and evolved: first for so-called “aliens” (non-citizens) and then to other categories of immigrant or citizen In 2010, Peggy McIntosh shared some notes on her classic “Invisible Knapsack” article (National Seed Project on Inclusive Curriculum) Ethicist Shannon Vallor speaks and writes on the AI Mirror https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40UbpSoYN4k); her book with Oxford UP comes out May 2024. The Associated Press reports on concerns about generative AI producing disinfo during the 2024 election cycle (August 2023) Harry Frankfurt’s On Bullshit (2004) A philosophy anthology where listeners can find the Aristotle essay Keisha and Damien mentioned and many other reflections on science, tech, and human values from the fields of technical communication and science, technology and society: Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology (2nd edition) Annanda’s closing nod to Black poet, professor, and theorist Audre Lorde references a conference address Lorde later published in the collection, Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches (Penguin, 1984/2020)

Have you ever considered the moral dilemma of a hologram narrating someone's life story for them? Dive into the latest episode of Moral Repair as we interview Otis Moss III about the interactive AI hologram of his father Civil Rights Leader Otis Moss Jr. showcased at the Maltz Museum in Ohio. Discover Zuogwi Earl Reeves how the black wisdom of hip-hop plays a pivotal role in the moral repair of narrating our tales authentically. Tune into the episode and embark on this thought-provoking journey with us. Otis Moss III pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ https://www.trinitychicago.org/rev-dr-otis-moss-iii/ Public Theologian Zuogwi Earl Reeves work https://www.zuogwiearl.com About the Maltz Museum exhibit on Rev. Dr. Otis Moss, Jr.:  <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diHzrepVY_U&t=19s ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diHzrepVY_U&t=19s) About aiEsther, the bot based on Esther Perel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSF-Al45hQU About museums and human remains: https://theconversation.com/us-museums-hold-the-remains-of-thousands-of-black-people-156558; see also https://www.science.org/content/article/racist-scientist-built-collection-human-skulls-should-we-still-study-them about the U of Penn Museum About Hologram-2Pac at Coachella with Snoop Dogg: 2012 NPR story with still from the performance About the Henrietta Lacks family settlement: <https://www.statnews.com/2023/08/01/henrietta-lacks-family-settlement-hela-cells/ ](https://www.statnews.com/2023/08/01/henrietta-lacks-family-settlement-hela-cells/)

What do we do about recommendation algorithms? What ethical standards could we use to reshape technology? Hosts Annanda and Keisha talk to Stewart Noyce, a technologist who helped develop the internet, and Rev. Dr. Sakena Young-Scaggs, an Afrofuturist scholar and philosopher, to understand how we can all navigate recommendation algorithms in a life-giving way. SHOW NOTES Learn more about Stewart’s work in marketing and consulting at StewartNoyce.com See IBM promoting their work at the 1994 Winter Olympics in this vintage ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNZ7k9Kgmek How do algorithms drive social inequality? Virginia Eubanks explains in Automating Inequality: How High-Tech Tools Profile, Police and Punish the Poor (St. Martin's Press) What’s Afrofuturism all about? Read Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci-Fi and Fantasy Culture by Ytasha L. Womack (Lawrence Hill Books) Learn about Black entrepreneurs receiving 1% of all venture capital: Sources of Capital for Black Entrepreneurs, Harvard Business Review, 2019 by Steven S. Rogers, Stanly Onuoha, and Kayin Barclay Explore more on “life giving and death dealing” from African feminist theologian Mercy Oduyoye in Beads & Strands: Reflections of an African Woman on Christianity in Africa (Theology in Africa), Orbis Press (2013)

How can we all thrive as we navigate technology, automation, and AI in the Information Age? What have technologists, philosophers, care practitioners, and theologians learned about the innovations and worldviews shaping a new century of unprecedented tech breakthroughs and social change?  On Moral Repair: A Black Exploration of Tech, hosts Annanda Barclay and Keisha McKenzie talk with tech and spiritual leaders. Their conversations inspire curiosity about tech while showcasing practical wisdom from the African continent and diaspora to nurture wellbeing for all.  Moral Repair expands mainstream tech narratives, celebrates profound insight from Black philosophy and culture, and promotes technology when it serves the common good. Listeners leave each episode with new ways to think about tech’s impacts and apply practical wisdom in their own lives.  Starting October 4, new episodes launch every 1st and 3rd Wednesday wherever you listen to podcasts. Moral Repair is for people creating, using, and being shaped by tech, wondering about its implications, and questioning what they can do about it.  Rev. Annanda Barclay is a death doula who explores life well-lived, a non-sectarian chaplain, and a Stanford researcher of moral injury and repair as it relates to tech. Dr. Keisha E. McKenzie is a technical communicator, strategist, and advocate who applies humanism and systems thinking to questions of well-being, public good, and ecology. In Season 1, episode themes range from recommendation algorithms and a Black ethical standard for evaluating tech to interactive holograms and hip hop as cultural memory tools. Other episodes explore moral repair, ideologies and philosophies shaping Silicon Valley, AI ethics, inclusive design, and tech well-being. Guests include Aral Balkan (Small Tech Foundation), Dr. Scott Hendrickson (data scientist), the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III (pastor, filmmaker, storyteller), Stewart Noyce (technologist and marketer), Zuogwi Reeves (minister and scholar), the Rev. Dr. Sakena Young-Scaggs (Stanford University’s Office of Religious & Spiritual Life,  Judith Shulevitz (culture critic), and Dr. Damien Williams (professor and researcher on science, technology, and society).  Moral Repair is part of PRX’s Big Questions Project, which supports new podcasts exploring discourse with exemplary thinkers focused on humanity's most profound questions. This season is supported by the John Templeton Foundation and PRX Productions.

This week, Keisha and Annanda explore AI and tech from the perspectives of the African diaspora in North America, in Europe, and continental Africa. We ask: Where’s Africa in the story of AI? What does the diaspora have to say about inclusion in tech? Our featured guest is Mutale Nkonde (AI For the People), and we get into inclusion, colonialism, and what we can all learn from the Maori.SHOW NOTES Talk to us at Instagram (@moralrepairpodcast), on X (@moralrepair), and on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/moral-repair-podcast/  Follow Mutale Nkonde at AI for the People.  MIT Technology Review: “Africa’s push to regulate AI starts now.” (March 2024) African Union: “African Ministers Adopt Landmark Continental Artificial Intelligence Strategy, African Digital Compact to drive Africa’s Development and Inclusive Growth” (June 2024) Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy on Anna Julia Cooper Combahee River Collective statement (1977) https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/combahee-river-collective-statement-1977/  China and African infrastructure projects: https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/26/china/china-african-loans-development-belt-and-road-intl-hnk/index.html

This week we’re sharing an episode with you from Heather Freeman at Magic in the US. Magic in the US is a PRX show that explores America’s magical communities. In this episode, we hear how pagans in the 1980s used the early internet to find each other. Enjoy the episode! Follow Magic in the US wherever you listen. 

This is an episode we think you’d enjoy of TED Tech, a podcast from the TED Audio Collective."Democracy is more fun and inviting when you take it into your own hands," says creator and activist Sofia Ongele. Sharing how she's using coding and social media to defend democracy, Ongele invites us to identify our own creative superpowers — whether it's community organizing, making music or telling stories — and use them to cause a ruckus and bring movements to life.TED Tech is a podcast that guides you through the latest ideas from TED speakers and uncovers the riveting questions that sit at the intersection of technology, society, science, design, business, and innovation. If you like TED Tech, find it wherever you get your podcasts.