A Wide-Ranging Conversation
Irina Raicu is the director of the Internet Ethics program at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. Views are her own.
On March 12, 2019, New York Times columnist and Recode co-founder Kara Swisher spoke at Santa Clara University. Titled “Silicon Valley and the Challenge of Ethics,” the lecture and conversation (featuring questions from the audience) touched on topics such as the vast power of tech leaders; recent proposals to break up “big tech”; the attention economy and tech addiction; the challenge of content moderation; the ways in which artificial intelligence is posed to reshape society; the next wave of innovation; and the suggestion that tech companies hire Chief Ethics Officers.
The event was co-sponsored by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, the Commonwealth Club Silicon Valley, and the High Tech Law Institute. The Commonwealth Club has now released a podcast of the talk:
One of the questions posed to Swisher was “What advice would you give to students who are educated in—and about to contribute to—Silicon Valley?” Skip to 26:15 for her answer, or listen to the entire entertaining, wide-range discussion.