糖心破解版

This book examines the historical and social processes through which media technologies, initially perceived as “new,” have become embedded in everyday life. Focusing on Google—a search engine platform that has become so ubiquitous that it may now be considered a form of digital infrastructure—the book explores how its algorithms were constructed and gradually rendered opaque through a process commonly referred to as “black-boxing.”
 
The book challenges the simplistic view that the black-boxing, or opacity, for which the algorithms of platforms such as Google have been frequently criticized stems solely from the arbitrary secrecy of such platforms. A careful historical analysis reveals that algorithmic opacity was not unilaterally imposed but was partly shaped by users’ own desire to avoid complexity. In this sense, the “black box” can be understood as a co-produced phenomenon, emerging from the interactions between technical systems and social expectations.
 
In addition, the book demonstrates that not all actors have treated these algorithms as impenetrable. By analyzing the practice of search engine optimization (SEO), the book clarifies that Google’s algorithm was not determined solely by the diktat of its designers. Rather, it was constructed through complex interactions involving multiple actors, including webmasters, as SEO practitioners. These actors engage with algorithmic structures not as passive recipients but as active participants, often working within the bounds of so-called “guidelines” issued by the platform. These guidelines function as normative frameworks that, while not formally enforceable, are collectively interpreted and negotiated by professional communities. The legitimacy of the algorithm is thus maintained not only through technical design but also through social consensus.
 
In highlighting these dynamics, the book destabilizes reductive narratives, such as the portrayal of platforms as monolithic agents of control, and instead underscores the importance of understanding algorithms as historically and socially contingent artifacts. This makes it possible to reimagine the social design of algorithms and AI systems. Rather than accepting their current configurations as inevitable or immutable, readers are invited to consider how algorithmic systems might be made more accountable, transparent, and responsive to the publics they influence.
 

(Written by: UDAGAWA Atsushi / September 08, 2025)