Human-Machine Communication: Rethinking Communication, Technology, and Ourselves [Book Review]

Abstract

Taken as a whole, Human-Machine Communication: Rethinking Communication, Technology, and Ourselves (edited by Andrea L. Guzman) is a thought-provoking introduction to the ideas and implications of communication between humans and machines. The book comprises a collection of articles grappling with the broader aspects of and consequences from treating non-human entities as subjects or targets of communication, and what this could mean for humanity.In the introduction, Guzman does an excellent job of placing humanmachine communication in the storied developments that have taken place in the field of communication studies. More specifically, Guzman expertly navigates the particularities of the study of human-machine communication as distinct from (and similar to) the study of human-tohuman communication. The editor's introduction provides a succinct overview of what the reader can expect from the book while making the subject matter accessible to those less familiar with the underpinnings of communication studies.

A Machine’s Ethos? An Inquiry Into Artificial Ethos and Trust

“…Even in books on human-machine communication, ethos is almost completely absent (Guzman, 2018;Guzman et al, 2023). One single exception exists in these booksa chapter on the rhetoric of social robots, in which Fritz (2018) relates how ethos is important for social robots, as also recognised by the companies developing robots such as the social robot Jibo. Jibo's creators see ethos as instrumental in their design and marketing strategies, and have developed a set of "value statements" to guide developers and engineers, describing how Jibo, for example, is curious, strives to belong, needs his family, etc.…”

“…Jibo's creators see ethos as instrumental in their design and marketing strategies, and have developed a set of "value statements" to guide developers and engineers, describing how Jibo, for example, is curious, strives to belong, needs his family, etc. (Fritz, 2018).…”

How the social robot Sophia is mediated by a YouTube video

“…She is designed to be similar to a woman, not just physically (level at which she replicates a binary and traditional femininity), but also in her identity, which is constituted fundamentally by two elements (Fortunati et al, 2021b). First, she has a woman's name and this stresses her similarity to a woman (see also Fritz, 2018). Second, Sophia's womanhood is articulated in a sophisticated way.…”