By Ellery Bruns, Tatum Cordy, and Erica Weidner<\/p>\n
Militarization of Big Data<\/span><\/i> assesses and investigates the United States military\u2019s use of big data to identify Generation Z individuals for military recruitment. We ask three main questions:<\/span><\/p>\n 1) How does the military collect and analyze data on potential recruits? <\/span><\/p>\n 2) How do bias and stereotypes play a role in the use of this data? <\/span><\/p>\n 3) How does this data influence recruiting practices? <\/span><\/p>\n Our project finds that the U.S. military has started to shift away from current recruitment practices to rely instead on big data and information technologies to more effectively recruit American youth. Military personal and pro-military scholarship advocate for a highly concerning increase in data enabled outreach tailored to Generation Z. The U.S. military uses data collected on potential military recruits\u2019 socioeconomic status, race, and gender to influence and inform its recruitment strategies. Further, big data enables the military to manipulate citizens with promises of financial security, educational funding, and medical benefits, all while exploiting marginalized communities. Our project is a prime example of knowledge organization gone wrong, illuminating the concerning implications for younger generations of the U.S. military\u2019s use of data enabled recruitment.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n