If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
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Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#2What’s fascinating is that prior to CA helping targeting in the previous election cycle, this capability was kind of embraced by politicians and industry as the next evolution in political campaigning... but few recognized an issue with that kind of data usage at the time...
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#3It's very silly to imagine that CA was the only player on the market. They are just the one that worked for the incorrect candidate.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#4Apologies for not reading the article, but the key feature of Cambridge Analytica seems to have been that their stuff didn’t appear to work.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#5Apologies for not reading the article, but the key feature of Cambridge Analytica seems to have been that their stuff didn’t appear to work.
The key feature of CA is that they were affiliated with the Trump campaign and therefore were made to be the scapegoats for what EVERYONE was doing. And yes, what they were doing specifically was a nothing burger.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#6Apologies for not reading the article, but the key feature of Cambridge Analytica seems to have been that their stuff didn’t appear to work.
I have only seen this concept on HN and not elsewhere. Can you explain what you mean? What about CA “didn’t appear to work”? I went researching just now and didn’t find anything online to back up that vague opinion, so what exactly do you mean?
There is certainly no way to know to what extent CA content changed voter patterns and actions. I don’t understand how you could be so confident you are right.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#7Apologies for not reading the article, but the key feature of Cambridge Analytica seems to have been that their stuff didn’t appear to work.
I have only seen this concept on HN and not elsewhere. Can you explain what you mean? What about CA “didn’t appear to work”? I went researching just now and didn’t find anything online to back up that vague opinion, so what exactly do you mean? There is certainly no way to know to what extent CA content changed voter patterns and actions. I don’t understand how you could be so confident you are right.
Some people (largely on the left) like to treat Cambridge Analytica as a dark boogey-man that broke politics.
This is partly true, however, a lot of hysteria around it is based off taking CA's marketing copy at face value.
The Cruz campaign (IIRC) fired them because they were useless.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#8Recent lengthy New Yorker article on the same topic, Simulmatics in the JFK presidential campaign: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/08/03/how-the-simulm...
And a couple subsequent letters from readers on the article:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/09/07/letters-from-t...
The New Yorker article was odd to me for a New Yorker article, it had a lot of historical context without a lot of details of what Simulmatics actually did for the Kennedy campaign. Perhaps there isn't a lot of historical record/people who want to talk about it. I was left feeing like I had learned that the Simulmatics founders had an idea, and successfully sold it to the Kennedy campaign and made some money, but not sure to what extent it actually provided value in that actual campaign.
With some people suggesting the same might be true of Cambridge Analytica.... the more things change? (I have no opinion on what value either CA or Simulmatics actually provided, I don't know enough).
I haven't listened to/read the NPR piece yet.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#9What’s fascinating is that prior to CA helping targeting in the previous election cycle, this capability was kind of embraced by politicians and industry as the next evolution in political campaigning... but few recognized an issue with that kind of data usage at the time...
I remember media singing praises for Obama campaign about how effective they were with social media. Using that to contrast him to mccain who apprently didn't know how to use email.
Re: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future
#10Apologies for not reading the article, but the key feature of Cambridge Analytica seems to have been that their stuff didn’t appear to work.
Yes, it did work:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22466733
Cambridge Analytica were the tip of the iceberg (graphcommons.com)