Staying Unmuted – with Aman Singh.
Meenakshi (Meena) Das
CEO at NamasteData.org | Advancing Human-Centric Data & AI Equity
Welcome to Data Uncollected, a newsletter designed to enable nonprofits to listen, think, reflect, and talk about data we missed and are yet to collect. In this newsletter, we will talk about everything the raw data is capable of – from simple strategies of building equity into research+analytics processes to how we can make a better community through purpose-driven analysis.
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When was the last time you read, understood, or questioned any consent documents you saw on social media? For example, it could be the page on data privacy here on LinkedIn or privacy terms for your account on Facebook or TikTok.?
Or maybe I should ask this differently – have you ever taken action other than accepting the social media's terms and conditions consent button?
I will admit – I didn't - at least until recently. A month ago, I decided to push myself out of my current comfort zone in new ways to reach people. So, I turned my personal Instagram into work Instagram to learn social engagement in a different flavor than LinkedIn. I will keep my experience for a separate post, but a week ago, when meta blocked my page for no reason, no warning, I had to go to their terms to understand what went wrong. Of course, everything was vague, but I want to know something specifically interesting I found there about running ads. For all accounts that intend to run any ads on meta's platform - ads can be flagged/blocked anytime while accessing the primary account holder's credit reports and random checks from credit bureaus!?
Random credit checks, sudden no-reason blocks on pages, randomly removing access to search filters on accounts – all examples of how challenging it can make engagement from small businesses. They are also examples of everything I found when I specifically decided to read the terms on ads. Does the question become, how is ticking the consent button on the privacy page helpful when most users do not understand this completely?
Aman's research as an information design consultant is about decoding this. His research (that you and I will learn more today) is about design explorations of ethics and agency in social media. To be more specific, his research is about three questions:
He says, "Today, information is free-flowing digitally on the internet. Everything is and can be converted into ones and zeros. So much so that even the steps we take are continuously calculated and updated on the device, and I remember asking myself – how do I put design into this?
This led me to information design. I started working in data visualization and went into depth of my research from there. Initially, it (research) just started looking into those terms and conditions, but as the research progressed, I started asking what else is there with data and design. How can I include everything about ethics here?"
All links to his research and portfolio are at the bottom of this article. Take a look at the links to see how he uses engaging visuals to explain the ideas of ethics with informed consent on social media (and more)!
Let us read some responses to questions I asked Aman on your and my behalf:
Q: What started this research??
"My research started with investigating the backlash against Whatsapp's privacy policy. My initial objective of the investigation was to look for ways to redesign the consent form.
When I say "consent form", I mean the terms and conditions space that every user acknowledges. To me, this was the most interesting point. Every application/website looks picture-perfect otherwise, but you go to the acknowledgment page, and the design quickly becomes plain, black-and-white text. I wanted to find out ways by which people can actually understand what they are saying yes to and meaningfully engage with that page before a rushed consent.
Gradually I got curious to answer why every privacy policy page/form looks the same. Everything privacy policy page looks the same, no matter which site or application you are on. And that's primarily because a standard design on the consent form is the one-step way of collecting your consent. That is not solely the way for an application to get to know who you are, but it does open a gate.?
Besides consent forms or not, today, it is easy to create digital personas. Everything I do on the internet, everything I search, all becomes part of my persona. So while that does not sound harmful on paper, the question becomes when does it become unethical or too far with this easy personification?
We are getting to a place where we can no longer freak about being shown ads of bikes suddenly when bikes were only a part of our conversation with friends and some photo exchanges on it."
Q: How do you see the role of ethics come into play with data privacy policies?
"The issue with privacy policy documents is while they do ask your consent in a checkbox, they do not offer a transparent and accessible understanding of the exact scenarios where your data will be used.
As part of my research projects, I visualized the terms and conditions for Pinterest. I went through their entire privacy policy document. It is more than 25 pages long and has 10,000+ words. That is a huge document. I tried to convert the text into visuals to create a roadmap for the readers.?
So, I created a design – of all those 5 sections, each with many subsections and links within it. Despite all that visualization, I never got my answer – where and why will my data be used? How will my data be used to affect my decisions?
Sometimes, privacy policy documents offer a link asking for user questions or comments, but more is needed. Those links don't give a clear and concise response but a set of more links to get "additional info".?People need to be aware of this: How does your data form your digital identity?
That is the role of ethics with data privacy policies."
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Q: What was the most challenging aspect of the research?
"It is commonly expected that research will have an answer at the end. During the research, I was often asked – what is the solution you are coming up with on this information design of ethics with social media?
That was the most challenging part of my research – to have one perfect conclusion. Every time I found an answer to one question, it led me to another question. So I found myself asking – is this failed research?
I realized over time that the purpose of my research was not to give the perfect solution. Instead, it was to bring forward the idea that data is evolving. It does not stay the same.
?So, ethics with social media – that doesn't have a perfect answer but good questions. That is why this research is ongoing. And we need to keep pushing this as long as data keeps evolving, technologies keep growing, and people continue interacting with the data.
The most challenging part of the research was coming to this conclusion."
Q: What impact do you hope to accomplish from this ongoing research? What do you want people to take from this research?
"I want people to have these conversations like the one we are having right now. I want us to have questions.
You know, every time I pick up my research where I left it off, I have more questions. And the only way to answer those questions would be through meaningful conversations. This research is a stepping stone to inviting more people and designers to understand the ethical implications of their work impacting end users. And to have this conversation, one does not necessarily have to be a designer.?
Who knows what questions we collectively come across next? That is the kind of impact I want from this work at this point."
Q: How can people engage with your work?
"I have an online portfolio and a website with a section called Design Research. That section has all of my research - from start to finish.
If someone wants to engage with my research, the best way is to go through that link. It also has a bunch of other projects. For example, as a design consultant, I did some projects with some companies. I also did some self-directed projects. I always welcome any questions or comments readers may have. I can be reached at my email or LinkedIn."
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Data is complicated, agreed. So is its privacy. Especially when it involves people – people like you and me. That means we need the same intention of protecting ourselves digitally as we do physically. And that starts with understanding what we say yes to - so we can consciously choose what we want to say no to.
We may need more research like Aman's to understand, debate, and design ethics in the digital world - a world we will only habitat more in the coming years.
Thanks to the Staying Unmuted dialogue series, you and I have another friend.
Aman, we are grateful for your work in helping us understand ethics in social media – that too with really cool visualizations that have long-term applications.
To becoming. To staying unmuted!
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***?So, what do I want from you today (my readers)?
Today, please check out Aman's work (links below) and share what speaks to you from this conversation.
Yoga Trainer| International Yoga Instructor| Fitness Trainer| Corporate Yoga Coach| Wellness Trainer
2 年Congratulations and best wishes to Aman Singh. Very informative article.
Senior Relationship Manager || CMII || WBG_LCG || MBA
2 年Exactly the point..no one goes through the matter which has asked us for the consent due to the lengthy 2 or 3 pages of substances..if the same is presented in a more crisp and in a digital form then human visualisations will be a value add.. very well answered Aman Singh
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2 年How true that data is forming our persona, even against our consent. It seems to be that visualization is more and more becoming the missing human component of technology as a whole. It allows us to understand and grasp fully the digital space in a way we haven't before. Such a great read!