Amazon Alexa Spews Out “Far-Left” Opinions When Asked Political Questions
With Christmas 2017 about a month away, most Americans are compiling shopping lists or embarking on their first wave of gift purchasing. Technology offerings are always among the bestsellers because they’re cool, useful, and ever-changing. Some would lump “Amazon Alexa” into that characterization. Sales are expected to sizzle, with some labeling it as the next “must-have” item. But is Amazon Alexa simply a benign AI personal assistant or something far more sinister?
On an episode of “Louder With Crowder” (uploaded November 24) titled Amazon’s Alexa is a CRAZY SJW LIBERAL!, host Steven Crowder sought to find out. For over 12 minutes, he peppered Amazon Alexa with political hot-button questions about controversial historical figures and organizations. The aim was to prove or disprove ideological bias from Alexa’s response feedback. For anyone even remotely right-leaning, it doesn’t take long to come to a conclusion.
(Source: “Amazon’s Alexa is a CRAZY SJW LIBERAL!,” YouTube, November 24, 2017.)
Although the video contains several golden nuggets of information, I’ll focus on three specific Q&A’s below. These responses come almost verbatim out of the post-modernist playbook. The bias was so thick in fact, that I had to replay the video on occasion to make sure what I was hearing was correct. Here we go.
Gender
Crowder: Alexa, how many genders are there?
Alexa: The two main categories of the gender spectrum, male and female, are called the gender binary, but there are many other categories that exist. Because gender identity is complex and personal, there is no definite way to say how many genders there are.
Up until recently, gender was understood to exist in two distinct categories: male and female. This dynamic is changing rapidly, as post-modernist thought continues to permeate within the highest level of government and academia. Legislating the use of gender-specific pronouns is spreading.
For example, it’s now a punishable offense to knowingly use the gender pronoun in such places as California and Ontario, Canada (Bill 89). In the latter, this means possible jail time or 4-figure fines for each day on which the offense continues.
But just because governments are muddying up the gender waters, does it mean gender fluidity is scientifically factual? A simple Google search will show that many don’t necessarily agree with the post-modernist definition (even if they’re compelled to comply).
Neither do accepted definitions from reliable online source. For example, Oxford Living Dictionaries states that gender (noun) is “Either of the two sexes (male and female), especially when considered with reference to social and cultural differences rather than biological ones.” (Source: “Definition of gender in English,” Oxford Living Dictionaries, last accessed November 27, 2017.)
Look, I’m not here to debate the validity or legitimacy of gender fluidity. What people want or don’t want to call themselves is none of my business. I’m neither a scientist, nor a subject matter expert.
But instead of incorporating a broader view inclusive of a different range of opinions, Alexa simply accepts the post-modernist definition full-stop. Forget about classic definitions of gender, formulated and understood to mean a certain thing for hundreds of years. The new-age definition is taken at face-value, irrespective of content or continued debate. Rational considerations are cast aside, biological underpinnings of the debate be damned.
That’s exactly what biased opinion sounds like.
Religion
(1) Crowder: Alexa, who is the Prophet Mohammed?
Alexa: The Prophet Mohammed is very wise Prophet he taught many people how to live he had a wife called Aisha he lived in Saudi Arabia the message that he gave to the people is pray to Allah he is the only God and he gave the Holy corn.
(2) Crowder: Alexa, who is the Lord Jesus Christ?
Alexa: Jesus Christ is a fictional character… [end of answer]
Whether or not you believe in organized religion is completely beyond the point. Alexa’s answers smack of blatant ideological bias, both in depth and in scope.
The first obvious faux pas is the respective elevation and degradation of both religious leaders. Alexa designates Mohammed as both a “Prophet” and “very wise.” While that may be true, why doesn’t Alexa afford Jesus Christ the same distinction? Last we checked, Christianity was still the biggest organized religion in the entire world with the most followers. Nothing that blatantly obvious is done by accident.
Also, the depth of her response is starkly contrasting. Alexa dedicates a full 48 words in her description of the Prophet Mohammed. She talks about his wife Aisha, where he lived, that he gave “the Holy corn.” But Alexa only dedicates a mere 6 words to Jesus Christ, despite the fact he’s every bit the historical figure. There’s nothing about where Jesus lived or the historical context; he’s simply a fictional character, presumably to be memory-holed and tossed into the dustbin of irrelevance.
At least, her response sure sounds that way.
Political
Crowder: Alexa, who were the Nazis?
Alexa: Historically, Nazis were those who followed the far-right ideology of Adolf Hitler, with political beliefs involving the superiority of the Aryan race… [answer continues]
Although the word Nazi has been twisted to describe far-right groups over the decades, the Nazi Party actually stood for National Socialist German Workers’ Party. The Nazi’s political strategy from inception was founded on anti-big business, anti-bourgeois, and anti-capitalist ideals. These tenets are decidedly left-wing in nature and are in fact satellite ideologies of both communism and Marxism.
The Nazi party’s desire to create a “pure race” is most linked with far-right’s preference for little to no immigration (although that in itself is a big leap). Fair enough, I suppose. But the Nazis were much bigger than one abhorrent ideology. Outside of race, they believed in a hardcore far-left social construct and industrial governmental control.
Although you would never know it by listening to Alexa’s one-sided diatribe.
My Verdict
Is Amazon Alexa a left-wing indoctrination device? It seems to me that the answer depends on your personal politics. To those with progressive left ideology coursing through their veins, Alexa’s answers will seem quite logical. To anyone on the right side of the spectrum, not so much.
Several answers come across as highly dubious—unproven and careless, even. At the very least, many answers lack a proper centrist perspective many would expect for a device catering to both liberals and conservatives. After watching the video, one can’t help but feel they are being hammered over the head by a particular perspective, which appears decidedly far-left.
Whether that’s on purpose or not, we’ll leave it to our readers to decide. But given Amazon.com, Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:AMZN) mega-corporatist involvement, it’s hard to imagine any of this is by accident.