Four Theses on Algorithmic Folklore

Recent advancements in machine learning have brought new forms of automation to the forefront of online interactions, exposing users of social media platforms and apps to different and unfamiliar kinds of algorithmic logics, which range from the curatorial biases of recommender systems and content analytics to the expansive possibilities offered by large language models and synthetic media. All these forms of automation are not only shaping how content circulates, but also how it is produced, and this is exemplified by new genres of vernacular creativity that emerge in response to algorithmic tools and their logics. From specialized in-jokes about computational processes to far-reaching myths about generative AI cryptids, there is growing evidence that algorithmic systems are accompanied by their own folklore. Emerging from the encounter between vernacular creativity and everyday automation, algorithmic folklore is not simply the newest iteration of digital folklore, but it encompasses a continuum of knowledges, narratives and practices that are both about algorithms and developed by or through algorithms. In this article, I explore this continuum through four theses, which can be summarized as such: Algorithmic folklore is old in niches, but new at scale (I); its core logic is the mutual shaping of creativities (II), and it emerges to fill a literacy vacuum (III) while rendering the boundaries of expertise more porous (IV).