Algorithm tips: how to investigate government algorithms

Algorithms are coming to adjudicate decisions in nearly all facets of the public and private sectors. But despite the potential for efficiency gains, algorithms fed by big data can also amplify structural discrimination or produce errors that deny services to individuals - the close monitoring of such systems is paramount. Algorithmic accountability reporting is a new form of journalism that is emerging to apply the core journalistic functions of watchdogging and investigative reporting to algorithms. This session with introduce the resources of AlgorithmTips.org to help you get started with algorithmic accountability reporting. Participants in this interactive session will collaboratively explore the use of algorithms at various levels of government by running targeted search queries on governmental sites. Potential leads will be fleshed out to help orient and situate the algorithm in terms of how it's used and how it may matter to the public. The appropriateness of various methods for undertaking investigation of the found algorithms will be discussed.