For Episode 21, I am joined by Dr. John Torrey to talk about whether or not we each have (and can find) “The One,” dating apps, the freedom to make bad choices, simulated relationships, and “Hang the DJ” (Season 4, Episode 4 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2017. This is the penultimate…
Read MoreFor Episode 20, I am joined by Dr. Eric Steinhart to talk about navigating compossible worlds and timelines, tech gods (and monsters), mental illness, books that (maybe) shouldn’t be read, and “Bandersnatch” (the stand-alone, interactive Black Mirror episode), which first premiered in 2018. Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast Before jumping…
Read MoreFor Episode 12, our first episode of 2021, I am joined by Dr. Zandria F. Robinson to talk about whose bodies get sacrificed in the name of scientific advancement, the contours of consciousness, suffering as spectacle, ancestral ghosts, and “Black Museum” (Season 4, Episode 6 of Black Mirror), which first aired in 2017. Listen/Download BLACK…
Read MoreFor Episode 14, I am joined by Dr. Charles W. McKinney, Jr. to talk about dehumanization techniques, the importance of race-conscious thinking, the dangerous logic of eugenics, whether an anti-racist technology is possible (or desirable), and “Men Against Fire.” Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast Support/Donate to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast…
Read MoreFor Episode 13, I am joined by Dr. Samir Chopra to talk about intelligent robots, personhood, the complicated machinations of human grieving, and “Be Right Back” (Season 2, Episode 1 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2013. Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast Support/Donate to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast My…
Read MoreFor Episode 16, I am re-joined by Dr. Shannon Mussett to talk about surveillance technologies, helicopter parenting, the differences between Gen X and Gen Z childhoods, how we might avoid raising a generation of sociopaths, and “Arkangel” (Season 4, Episode 2 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2017. Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK…
Read MoreFor Episode 15, I am re-joined by Dr. Ammon Allred to talk about social media cesspools, climate change, the unwritten rules of hashtags, so-called “cancel culture,” the Capitol insurrection, and “Hated in the Nation” (Season 3, Episode 6 of Black Mirror), which originally premiered in 2016. (Of course, we also talk about Derrida.) Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR…
Read MoreFor Episode 17, I am joined by Dr. Charles Mills to talk about punishment, non-ideal theories of justice, why philosophers love science fiction, and “White Bear” (Season 2, Episode 2 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2013. Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast Support/Donate to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast I’ve been…
Read MoreFor Episode 19, I am joined by Dr. Roman V. Yampolskiy to talk about killer robot dogs, poker playing AIs, the control problem, how long we have left before the rise of the machines, what it would be like to be a superintelligence’s pet, and “Metalhead” (Season 4, Episode 5 of Black Mirror), which…
Read MoreFor Episode 18, I am joined by cultural critic and superstar podcaster Karen Tongson to talk about teenage angst, celebrity, what makes pop music “popular,” and “Rachel, Jack, and Ashley Too” (Episode 2, Season 5 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2019. Listen/Download BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast episodes Subscribe to BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS podcast I have…
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