This is an amazing piece Anita. So much is stacked against darker skin tones - and also if you do get through the algorithm as a south Asian woman (I found) you also can be pigeonholed by your ethnicity - being good at cooking, submissive etc. Really othering.
Thank you for writing this. It’s wildly creepy that they say their goal is to match people who look alike. (I’m not trying to date my brother?!) Tech bros aren’t even trying to hide their racism now.
I never thought about it, but I definitely saw mostly people with hair as dark as mine and skin as light as mine when using dating apps--Queer ones! I've never wanted to date someone who looked like me.
This is a *brilliant* piece. I don't think I've seen anyone dive into this subject from this angle, and it just exposes again how gross and racist tech is in the 21st century.
I haven't opened the apps in a while but oddly I had a different experience with them.
I've only been on dates with people of different races (I am very pale with dark hair). I don't think I filled in a preference for race so maybe that confuses the algorithm ?...
Algorithms are sad. Being conventionally attractive is something I've reflected on a lot (hello, aesthetic philosophy graduate here) and, with the disenchantment of an alternative kid, I'd say: so be it. If someone really crossed out entire races, would I want to see them in my options? Not really.
This is brilliant. This is also the case for Instagram algorithm. Creators that are blonde/white likely to get a lot more air time than people of colour. I would say it’s a partly a reflection on what our society is like but you do expect “an app” to give you a fair shot.
This is an amazing piece Anita. So much is stacked against darker skin tones - and also if you do get through the algorithm as a south Asian woman (I found) you also can be pigeonholed by your ethnicity - being good at cooking, submissive etc. Really othering.
Thank you for writing this. It’s wildly creepy that they say their goal is to match people who look alike. (I’m not trying to date my brother?!) Tech bros aren’t even trying to hide their racism now.
I never thought about it, but I definitely saw mostly people with hair as dark as mine and skin as light as mine when using dating apps--Queer ones! I've never wanted to date someone who looked like me.
This is a *brilliant* piece. I don't think I've seen anyone dive into this subject from this angle, and it just exposes again how gross and racist tech is in the 21st century.
Wow! I honestly had no idea that the online dating apps were so skewed!
I haven't opened the apps in a while but oddly I had a different experience with them.
I've only been on dates with people of different races (I am very pale with dark hair). I don't think I filled in a preference for race so maybe that confuses the algorithm ?...
Algorithms are sad. Being conventionally attractive is something I've reflected on a lot (hello, aesthetic philosophy graduate here) and, with the disenchantment of an alternative kid, I'd say: so be it. If someone really crossed out entire races, would I want to see them in my options? Not really.
This is brilliant. This is also the case for Instagram algorithm. Creators that are blonde/white likely to get a lot more air time than people of colour. I would say it’s a partly a reflection on what our society is like but you do expect “an app” to give you a fair shot.
This is such a good piece Anita and so important to expose these biases in the apps.