A New Discourse

In the 1970s and ’80s, French historian and philosopher named Michel Foucault examined history as a collective story, and not as an objective list of facts. That perspective has not only changed how we think about culture — it exposes some deep implications of new social technologies.

Overview

Context: Foucault and the Discourse

		Michel Foucault studied the public exchange of ideas within a society — what he called “the discourse”. To him, that ongoing narrative actively defines our culture, and who we are as individuals.   Read more >>

Consequence: A New Discourse Is Writing Itself…in SQL

		New technologies like “collaborative filtering” are allowing a new kind of discourse to arise…the first that can now operate outside of what we consciously think and do.   Read more >>

Conclusions: The Implications of a New Discourse

		Those changes aren’t intrinsically good or bad, but they are powerful, and they challenge us with some very important questions.   Read more >>