Prof. Emily M. Bender(she/her)My Feb 2026 Katz Lecture for UW's Simpson Center for the Humanities is now available on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7Lc6QNxolQ
Unfortunately, the recording doesn't include the Q&A. Two things I remember from that:
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YouTube
The first is a student who asked how to resist pressure to use "AI" without being a stick in the mud. I said: Be a stick in the mud! Help create the solid ground that others might stand on too.
I shared this story with Sam Cole on the @404mediaco podcast, too:
The Marketing Tricks of "Artificial Intelligence"
The other was a student who asked if I thought we could get back to a world where people care about art. I turned that back to the audience and asked "Who here cares about art?" Every single hand went up. Not a random sample of the population to be sure, but the question asker was also not alone.
JW@emilymbender
Famously, in1980s or 1990s the Australian Treasurer told an arts lobby group to stop telling him about the economic value of art and start telling him about the social and artistic values.
Famously, in1980s or 1990s the Australian Treasurer told an arts lobby group to stop telling him about the economic value of art and start telling him about the social and artistic values.