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The most read articles of 2023 in the technology section of EL PAÍS are summarized above all with one word: fear. There are several types of fears: of mobile phones, of AI with porn, of AI terminatorto industrial espionage and, in short, to the future and the end of civilization.
It has its logic. If we all die it will be difficult to enjoy ChatGPT, TikTok or memes. Although fear is not the only thing that technology stands out for. There are another handful of things: the iPhone 15, Threads, the technical problems. But nothing has the general interest of variants of the apocalypse.
There will be those who think that it is because the media always gives more fear than hope. It is partly undeniable, but it is not our fault alone. The newspaper has published tricks, praise and celebration of technology, but they have had much less impact.
The list is more or less in order. There are some grouped by topic to speed things up.
1. Are you sure you should give a cell phone to teenagers?
It is undoubtedly one of the two big topics of the year (the other is AI and its various negative consequences). On November 3, we published a topic on a WhatsApp group of parents in Barcelona: “'A 12-year-old child is not ready': why thousands of parents are banding together to delay the arrival of the first mobile phone,” said the headline.
That piece sparked a national and media movement. Since then, hundreds of chats have been organized throughout Spain with thousands of families with the aim of delaying the age of the first mobile phone. Dozens of media have replicated the concern, because there is real interest. Now that age is mostly 12 years old, when kids start ESO.
It is a complex issue without a clear answer. Cautious parents say social media, pornography, pedophiles and other corners of the Internet are too dark a pit to leave 12-year-olds unattended. Meanwhile, on the other side, they see more opportunities, more need to educate and better predisposition of adolescents.
Proof that fear spreads better is that other pieces with less marked headlines have had much fewer visits: for example, “At what age should a child be given a cell phone: the experts speak” or “'The cell phone is not the enemy, those parents are very afraid': the battle for the first telephone shakes Spanish families.”
Another reason for this disparity, coupled with fear, is that worried parents had not detected that their concern was widely shared. On the other hand, parents less concerned about age and mobile phone may have already accepted their decision.
Adults are also concerned about their dependence on mobile phones. Articles about old Nokias and variants are often successful. Maybe not because you are going to buy one, but because of the nostalgia for a time when not everything was on the cell phone: “'Not even Christ is calling me': the resurgence of 'dumb' phones,” was one of the most read topics.
2. AI strips girls and does more terrible things
In March we published the second most read topic of the year: “'Deepfakes': the threat with millions of views that targets women and challenges security and democracy.” We had not yet seen what happened in the fall in a chat in Almendralejo, but AI's ability to “invent” a naked body to match it to a known face was already known.
3. Two new things that have interested: the iPhone 15 and Threads
This is surprising. New devices or simple apps do not usually stand out anymore. In fact, this year the Apple Vision Pro was presented, which is good innovation. But what was of great interest was the iPhone that was released this year. Maybe it was because of the USB-C connector (the normal one that other phones have) or because of its camera, but the iPhone was successful again. The live presentation of an iPhone was a hit a few years ago. But it hadn't been for a long time. It's curious.
After a year of Elon Musk on Twitter/X, perhaps the most viable alternative to that social network came out: Threads, by Meta. Although it did not arrive in Spain (and Europe) until last week, the original July article on the global release was widely read. It was partly a help piece: how it downloads and how it works. Just as the topics of Musk's anniversary or his problems have aroused little interest, Threads has. Who knows why.
There is another product that has interested quite a few readers: “The first wireless television that sticks to the wall 'as if by magic'”.
4. We are interested in knowing how AI will kill us
This is clearly the topic with the most articles: the distant fear that artificial intelligence will destroy humanity. As with Twitter, ChatGPT's first anniversary will also be celebrated in November 2023, but people prefer to know what it is going to die from.
The widely read topics that fall here are the departure of Geoffrey Hinton, godfather of AI, from Google and his interview, titled: “If there is a way to control artificial intelligence, we must discover it before it is too late.” Of all the fuss with the departure and return of Sam Altman at OpenAI, the issue that blew him away was the alleged discovery of something very threatening that he should have seen firsthand. “OpenAI researchers warned of an advance that threatened humanity before Altman's dismissal,” the topic was titled. It is still unknown what happened.
It is curious that now there is less talk about this apocalyptic future, but it continues to fascinate just the same. For example, another widely read topic was about the bunkers that technology magnates have. It was from an interview with the writer Douglas Rushkoff: “The technological elite is preparing for the apocalypse, it sees the end of civilization close.” In addition, it helped that Vice President Yolanda Díaz read and quoted it.
A curious detail is that the topics we have discussed about the hypothetical impact of AI on our jobs have not yet been of much interest. Perhaps it is too disturbing a topic.
5. Privacy, but only if the threat is uncontrolled
Technology users continue to be surprised that many devices have huge security holes that allow marketing companies to shape our personalities. This year it was not Android phones and the software they come pre-installed, but the famous “internet of things” that surrounds us in our homes. Everything is smart now and that has a price. “This is how smart devices spy on us and reveal information about our homes: 'People have no idea,'” he said. And behind it there are two Spanish researchers.
Another topic that worked very well regarding privacy is the use of a VPN for browsing: “I have installed a VPN on my computer and I don't think I will ever browse without it again.”
6. Technical problems are horrible (and viral)
In the section we already know that when something drops (especially WhatsApp), there will be thousands of people entering Google to see if it is them or if it is something general.
This year it happened, again, with WhatsApp and, surprisingly, with payment systems.
7. The words of young people suck it up
At this point it must be admitted that a newspaper is more interesting to those over 30 years of age. Thus, one of the uses of the media is to explain to young people. An obvious issue, and quite technological, is language. “'Lit', 'shipping' or NPC: dictionary to understand young people in 25 key expressions”, we titled a vocabulary. We don't dare to add “serve pussy” (someone who does something very well) and “by the ass” (something that's cool, the “ass” improves your perception), which went viral a few days ago on They like to know what young people say and young people like to be different. Everything fits. At the moment, the RAE does not seem to follow these debates closely.
Another new word that worked was “phubbing”that no one says it, but everyone does it: it is “the unpleasant telephone habit that annoys couples during the summer” and which consists of “getting distracted by looking at your cell phone while sharing a moment of leisure.”
8. Tinder is a guarantee
Tinder works, both in real life and in the newspaper. It's that classic that always appears at Christmas. People like to flirt and if the “Tinder scientific advisor” explains how, even better. She also advises that “don't be picky”, as it works for everything.
9. But did Pedro Sánchez have a beard?
Pedro Sánchez's beard was a topic of debate with the initial AI of Bing (Microsoft). It was one of the greatest examples of how messy a robot can be and it was fun too. On top of that, it was a topic that arose from this newsletter. Double joy.
The President of the Government works well in technology. “Perro sanxe” also gave a lot of play: “'Perro sanxe' immortal, the pucherazo of Correos and Ayuso like Judas: the memes won after 23J.”
10. TikTok yes, but only a little
We have posted quite a bit about TikTok. Even about the mysterious singer who reached number 1 globally. But the only TikTok topic that appears among the most read of the year is about journalism, something that greatly affects other generations: “The four twenty-something women from Madrid who have created the largest Spanish-language news outlet on TikTok” was widely viewed.
The future interests us, but above all ours.
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