Believing In Bits

In this episode, Paul and Gabriella discuss: 

• What Gabriella Coleman means by “sturdy knowledge” and why the concept matters in today’s epistemic crisis
• How misinformation debates often rely on a “naive liberal epistemology” that oversimplifies how knowledge is produced
• Why is scientific consensus difficult to achieve, even without political polarization
• Why AI boosterism reflects the same epistemic blind spots as science absolutism

Key Takeaways: 

• Establishing reliable knowledge is never simple or automatic, even in the absence of political polarization. Scientific facts emerge through contested processes shaped by uncertainty, debate, and institutional structures.
• Treating facts as obvious or self-evident often deepens mistrust rather than resolving disagreement. Absolutist claims leave little room for nuance, making public corrections feel like evidence of deception instead of scientific evolution.
• Knowledge is always produced within social and political contexts, and pretending otherwise undermines credibility. Transparency about positionality and process strengthens trust more than claims of pure neutrality.
• AI boosterism repeats the same epistemic mistakes as science absolutism by framing technology as a neutral source of truth. Without humility and accountability, AI risks amplifying, not solving, the current epistemic crisis.

“And you know this notion of sturdy knowledge, as we've explored. And you put so well, is anti-arrogance, it's like pro-humility.” - Gabriella Coleman

Episode Resources:

• Donna Haraway, “Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective”
• Bruno Latour, Reassembling the Social
• Bruno Latour, The Pasteurization of France
• Susan Sontag, Illness as Metaphor
• Naomi Klein, Doppelgänger

About Gabriella Coleman: Gabriella (Biella) Coleman is a full professor of Anthropology at Harvard University and a faculty associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society. Her work focuses on the politics, cultures, and ethics of hacking, and she is widely regarded as one of the leading scholars examining hacker communities and digital power. She is the author of Coding Freedom: The Ethics and Aesthetics of Hacking and Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy: The Many Faces of Anonymous, the latter named a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2014 and recipient of the 2015 Diana Forsythe Prize from the American Anthropological Association.

Coleman’s current research examines the relationship between hackers and the state, including a Ford Foundation–, NSF-, SSHRC-, and FRQ-funded project on the professionalization of hacking from the mid-1990s through the 2000s, co-authored with Matt Goerzen. She is also co-creator of Where Warlocks Stay Up Late, an interactive research website and map, and the founder and editor of Hack_Curio, a video portal on the cultures and politics of hacking.

Beyond academia, Coleman has contributed to major outlets including The New York Times, Wired, Slate, MIT Technology Review, The Atlantic, and Huffington Post, and presented her research to audiences such as the U.S. Congressional Internet Caucus, Brookings Institution, ACLU, and NASA. She delivered the 2022 Lewis Henry Morgan Lectures at the University of Rochester, previously held the Wolfe Chair in Scientific and Technological Literacy at McGill University, taught at NYU, and earned her PhD in sociocultural anthropology from the University of Chicago.

Connect with Gabriella Coleman: 

Website: https://gabriellacoleman.org/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriella-biella-coleman-285aa4161/ 

Connect with Paul Ryer & School for Advanced Research:

Website: https://sarweb.org/ 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@sarsantafemultimedia 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-ryer-4a4889156   

Show notes by Podcastologist: Francine Poblete

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