Reading Notes template for Data C104: Human Contexts and Ethics of Data
Author: Langdon Winner
Title: Do Artifacts have Politics?
Publication Date: 1980
Background
● Who is the author? What is their disciplinary
background? (Keep this brief, one or two
sentences or bullet points)
● What kind of text is this (i.e. book chapter,
academic journal article, newspaper article,
blog post, etc.)?
Précis
Give a brief account of the text’s main argument in
roughly 5 sentences with respect to its relevance to
the week’s lecture material. Always keep in mind:
why has this reading been assigned, and why this
week? What intervention does it make?
Langdon Winner specializes in Science and
Technology Studies. His disciplinary background
focused on political theory while studying political
science.
The source material appears to be an academic
journal article.
The source material discusses sociotechnical systems:
the intersection of societal roles and technology in how
humans operate. The text argues that technologies are
not innately hard-coded with a preferred leaning
towards specific political ideologies; instead it adapts
to the society in which it is used in. Winner finds the
concept of certain technologies being more compatible
with certain ideologies as opposed to others a
troubling thought. I would assume that this reading
was assigned to encourage thought into how
technology plays into societal behavior. In studying
this, policies and regulations can be designed to keep
both parties (technology and society) in check.
A Quote and a Question
Provide one to two key quotes from the text that are
either representative of the author’s main argument
or that you found especially
interesting/controversial/surprising; and provide one
question about the reading. You might pose a
question about something you found
confusing/intriguing in the reading, or a discussion
question based on the reading that you would like to
discuss in section.
“What matters is not technology itself but the social
or economic system in which it is embedded.”
I found this quote to be general but applicable in
multiple thought and hypothetical posits. For
instance, I find it interesting that nuclear energy as a
technological discovery has been more compatible
with authoritarian states. I see that the proliferation
and deployment of nuclear weapons is concerning
amongst authoritarian states, but I do not believe that
a certain discovered technology is fated to be
subscribed to a certain ideology.
Optional:
1. List key terms, tools from the toolkit, or
other themes relevant to the course that
appeared in this reading.
2. Paste additional key quotes or the author’s
thesis
3. In what ways does the article bear upon or
inform the topic of your vignette?
4. Any other notes or commentary you’d like to
share? What are your opinions regarding
this article? Does the author argue their
thesis well? How does it relate to other texts
from the course? From this week?