MEDIA RELEASE

US author Virginia Eubanks to visit NZ in March

‘Automating Inequality’ author set to speak in Auckland and Wellington on the impact of technology, data and algorithms on the poor and working-class

AUCKLAND, 25 February 2019 – US-based professor and writer Virginia Eubanks will visit New Zealand in March for a series of events promoting her new book Automating Inequality and discussing the impacts of technology and big data on the poorest people in society.

For two decades, Eubanks has worked in community technology and economic justice movements, and today is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the University at Albany in New York. Her writing on technology and social justice has appeared in publications such as Scientific American, The Nation, Harper’s, and Wired.

In her new book, Automating Inequality: How High-Tech Tools Profile, Police, and Punish the Poor, Eubanks explores how data mining, policy algorithms, and predictive risk models are increasingly affecting vulnerable people in society – the poor and working-class.

Tohatoha, in association with InternetNZ, is hosting events in Auckland and Wellington where attendees can meet Prof. Eubanks and hear her perspective on how the issues raised in a USA context in her book may also be applicable to New Zealand.

“In an age where New Zealand is increasingly moving towards automation of public systems and social services, this is a prime opportunity to hear from a specialist on the subject and consider whether inequality is becoming automated in New Zealand, why it matters and what can be done about it,” says Tohatoha CEO, Mandy Henk.

Event details are as follows:

• AUCKLAND: Friday, 15 March, 3-5pm - GridAKL, 12 Madden Street, Wynyard Quarter (Presentation, Q+A, book signing) [Tickets here]

• WELLINGTON: Monday, 18 March, 4-6pm - Rangimarie Room, Te Papa, 55 Cable St, Te Aro (Panel discussion with Prof. Tim Dare - ‘Are we automating inequality in Aotearoa?’) [Tickets here]

Discussion and Q&A at the Auckland event will be led by Mandy Henk. The Wellington event will be led by Jordan Carter, CEO of InternetNZ. Tickets for these events are $25 (waged) or $10 (unwaged).

Prof. Eubanks is available for interview in advance of, and during her time in New Zealand. Interview requests can be made via Tohatoha’s contact details below.

For tickets reservations and more information on Tohatoha’s work in New Zealand, visit http://tohatoha.nz

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