Activists are organizing to combat generative AI and other technologies—and reclaiming a misunderstood label in the process.

The New Luddites Aren’t Backing Down::Activists are organizing to combat generative AI and other technologies—and reclaiming a misunderstood label in the process.

  • CorrodedEnglish
    18•10 months ago

    The original Luddites were hailed as folk heroes—they were cheered in the streets as they smashed machinery, and they were championed by Lord Byron. Today, at a time when a majority of Americans are in favor of stronger tech regulation, workers like the writers and actors pushing for protections against AI are popular too. In one Gallup poll, Americans sympathized with the writers over the studios by 72 to 19 percent

    I don’t know if it’s just where I went to school but the Luddites weren’t portrayed as folk heroes there. They were portrayed as people digging their heels in the sand against change.

    That’s also an extremely big range for a percentage. I wonder how the poll was setup.

    • @[email protected]English
      5•10 months ago

      A 9% undecided actually sounds about right, and actually smaller than I would have expected considering how poorly most people understand or care about the subject matter

      And “Luddite” today has been repainted into what you said, but yeah, they weren’t seen like that at the time