On Episode 576, I welcome Dr. Emily M. Bender, professor of Linguistics at the University of Washington, and Dr. Alex Hanna, Director of Research at the Distributed AI Research Institute and lecturer at UC Berkeley’s School of Information, to Teaching in Higher Ed. We explore their new book, The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech's Hype and Create the Future We Want. Emily and Alex clarify how the term “AI” is often misapplied and manipulated by big tech as an advertising buzzword, blending everything from simple spreadsheets to complex chatbot systems under one incoherent label. Emily and Alex stress the dangers of AI hype in educational spaces and beyond, challenging listeners to think more precisely about synthetic text and image generation technologies, and to resist the seductive narratives spun by boosters and doomers alike. We discuss the illusion that generative AI is a magical solution, the environmental and ethical implications of large language models.

Resources from the episode:

• The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want, by Emily M. Bender and Alex Hanna
• Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR)
• The Princess Bride
• Emily Tucker, Executive Director, Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law
• On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots: Can Language Models Be Too Big? By Emily M. Bender, Timnit Gebru, Angelina McMillan-Major, and Shmargaret Shmitchell
• Emily M. Bender’s website
• How the right to education is undermined by AI, by Helen Beetham
• How We are Not Using AI in the Classroom, by Sonja Drimmer & Christopher J. Nygren
• Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI, by Karen Hao

Episode topics:

• The Meaning and Misuse of "AI"
• Demystifying Artificial Intelligence Hype
• Language Models as Stochastic Parrots
• Anthropomorphism and Machine Interpretation
• The Booster vs. Doomer Debate in AI
• Teaching Critical Perspectives on AI in Higher Ed
• AI, Authentic Learning, and Student Writing
• The Casualization of Academia Through Automation
• Environmental Impact & Magical Thinking Around AI and Climate

Discussion questions:

1. Emily Bender describes “AI” as an advertising term rather than a coherent set of technologies. In what ways does this ambiguity impact how AI is adopted in education and beyond?
2. What are the dangers of conflating synthetic text generators with actual human intelligence, especially in classroom settings?
3. Discuss the “booster” versus “doomer” narratives around AI. According to the guests, why are these positions much closer than they may appear, and what perspectives might they be missing?
4. The guests argue that AI hype diverts attention from immediate, real-world harms already occurring. What are some examples they give, and how should educators address these in their own institutions?
5. How does the “stochastic parrot” metaphor help (or hinder) public understanding of what large language models actually do?

Related Episodes

The following episodes complement The AI Con by extending the critical exploration of AI tools and their impact on teaching—from writing and pedagogical integrity to the broader context of technology in higher ed.

• Climate Action Pedagogy (Episode 488, with Karen Costa)

  Explores how faculty can view every course—and every job—as inherently tied to climate action. Costa offers a three‑pillar model (accessibility, emergent strategy, learning‑experience design) and practical small‑step tactics for integrating climate work in higher ed.

• Teaching Machines (Episode 397, with Audrey Watters)

  A compelling exploration of the history of educational technology—from Skinner’s pigeon video experiments to today’s adaptive learning tools—and a call to learn from the past to shape a more conscious future.

• ChatGPT and Good Intentions in Higher Ed (Episode 452, with Autumm Caines)

  Examines how ChatGPT is being adopted in academia—often driven by good intentions—and explores the pedagogical, ethical, and practical implications for teaching and learning (context/details pulled into notes).

• How to Think About Writing in the Age of AI (Episode 564, with John Warner)

  A thoughtful conversation about writing in AI’s era, addressing how educators and students can preserve authentic voice, critical thinking, and originality while engaging with new writing technologies.

Recommended

Watch: Lewis Black Rags on the State of Education and the Rise of ChatGPT University | The Daily Show

Students and teachers alike are outsourcing all their work to AI, but Lewis Black thinks kids should stop experimenting with AI in college and go back to experimenting with fun things, like LSD. #DailyShow #LewisBlack #ChatGPT

Quotable Words

Robin Wall Kimmerer writes in Braiding Sweetgrass:

For all of us, becoming Indigenous to a place means living as if your children’s future mattered....to take care of the land as if our lives, both material and spiritual depended on it.

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On the upcoming episode of Teaching in Higher Ed, Jessamyn Neuhaus returns to Teaching in Higher Ed. This time, she shares about Snafu Edu: Teaching and Learning When Things Go Wrong in the College Classroom.

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Affiliate income disclosure: Books that are recommended on the podcast link to the Teaching in Higher Ed bookstore on Bookshop.org. All affiliate income gets donated to the LibroMobile Arts Cooperative (LMAC), established in 2016 by Sara Rafael Garcia.”

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