Pornography, Persona and Server
By: Lina M. Sánchez Betancourt
Astounding things happen every time you use Google or any other search engine. First off, you find what you're looking for.
While you may be familiar with the concepts of "data" and "big data," as well as the considerable profits tech giants amass from your information, there is something even more sinister and twisted than mere economic aftermath.
Within the framework of capitalism, nothing comes for free, but that's hardly a revelation. Most of us know that we pay for ostensibly free online services with our personal information and that such information is collected and analyzed. What is the extent of this data? At least everything that users willingly provide. The collection and analysis of this data yield astonishing results. Not only are the holders of the data able to outline an exact picture of who you are, but they also have the ability to predict. For example, servers can predict if you will get pancreatic cancer or your voting preferences in upcoming elections. That is, they can make unbeatable accurate guesses about the global future and your individual future.
The backbone of this trick and its consequences is the relationship forged between the user and the server. The user, whom I'll refer to as Persona, isn't solely seeking answers to queries like "how to cook lentils" or "where to eat tonight" but also establishes an intimate relationship with the search engine or the service provider, let's call it Server.
For Persona, turning to Server to seek information about incontinence or erectile dysfunction is more comfortable and feels safer than confiding in a friend because Server delivers, doesn't judge, doesn't mock, and doesn't expose. Therefore, Persona surrenders without hesitation to the private relationship they establish with Server, which is public and can provide many good answers precisely because of its public nature.
In public, Persona may proclaim themselves as heterosexual, but behind closed doors, they might enter homosexual chat rooms and seek out information that contradicts the public persona they've meticulously crafted. Server knows Persona beyond the craftsmanship of their facade. Server knows if Persona wants to "falsify taxes," "steal from the neighbor," learn about the "symptoms of X disease," or even devise strategies to "avoid paying the subway fare." Server knows if Persona has been unfaithful or if they struggle with mental health issues. Server knows.
And here's a question. What do you think is the most frequent search among the unemployed? If you guessed "job offers," you haven't yet understood how Server works, and you're mistaken. In a podcast episode, Stephens-Davidowitz, a former Google employee, gave an answer: an old game, Solitaire. And pornography. The unemployed constitute the primary consumers of pornography.
People lie in interviews, in conversations, in surveys. They deceive friends and partners; they lie to themselves. But lying to Server? That's unlikely. It doesn't compute. Server isn't another Person; it is a faceless, emotionless resource, it asks no questions and is fundamentally, supposedly, passive. Server seems to be waiting in the clouds for Persona to come.
Never before has such a sincere and unfiltered relationship existed as the one between Persona and Server (perhaps reminiscent of the old relationship between Persona and their diary). However, it doesn't work the other way around. Persona turns to Server when grappling with questions that profoundly affect them, keeping them awake at night; those questions they struggle to voice aloud.
The information provided is sold to other companies, primarily to influence Persona's purchasing decisions or desires. But it can also fall into even more nefarious hands. However, the fate of this analyzed data or the broader privacy debate falls outside the scope of this article.
What I want to highlight here is the nonreciprocal relationship. Something is given, and another thing received, and that's why it is maintained, but what is given differs from what is received. Persona seeks the relationship out of necessity or boredom and receives varied information tailored to their needs without apparent value judgments. Server offers that information and receives a complete map of who Persona is. It receives Persona without masks, lies, and intermediaries; the most private, intimate side of Persona.
What's even more unsettling is that, if we start from the premise that Persona actively deceives themselves but does not deceive Server, we could make an educated guess: Server knows Persona better than Persona admits or knows about themselves. Server is beyond the truth within which Persona resides, on a transcendental level of knowledge.
Now, from this topic, many other questions also emerge. One that has been on my mind lately is: if Server can accurately predict, for example, that Persona may develop a chronic illness in a few months, should it tell them? Would this be a way to create an active two-way relationship?
Much remains to be explored on this subject. Yet, for today, this is how it ends —not with a bang, but with a whimper.