Research Seminar - Generative Hate

Generative Hate

Presented by: Dr Luke Munn and Meg Herrmann

Date: Friday 28 February 2025
Time: 12:00noon to 1:00pm
Location: Online via Zoom and in-person at the Writers Studio (Level 6, Michie Building)

Abstract

From fictional movie posters to photorealistic scaremongering, AI image models are increasingly used to generate hateful material. This project explores how ancient prejudices are resurrected and injected with new energy via generative AI. To investigate this phenomenon, we combine a technical analysis of Stable Diffusion with a social analysis of AI hate examples across several platforms. We argue users exploit the model’s low barrier-to-entry and embedded stereotypes to carry out a kind of generative play, creating countless permutations and new variations of a core hate idea as a social game. This conceptualization, which we term generative hate, advances our understanding of how hate is mobilized in new ways through AI image models and provides a basic foundation for interventions aiming to combat it.

Presenters

Luke Munn is a Research Fellow in Digital Cultures & Societies at the University of Queensland, Australia. The author of six books and numerous articles, his work combines digital methods and critical insights from across the humanities to explore the social, political, and environmental implications of contemporary technologies.

Meg Herrmann is a PhD candidate at the University of Queensland and a student member at the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision Making and Society. Her work is interdisciplinary in nature, branching across digital media research, film and television studies, and philosophy of art. She is currently exploring the impact of media platforms on cultures of production, with a focus on the film and television industry.