Debord, Spectacle, and Technical Incrementalism in the Humanities
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22024400 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Thomas R Metcalf (0000-0001-9457-8177, University of Bonn, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 39 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Publication date | 2026-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophy & Technology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2210-5433 • E-ISSN: 2210-5441 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s13347-026-01146-w |
| OpenAlex | W7167209588 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 15 |
Muttaqin et al. (2026) provide an illuminating commentary on a recent article of mine in this journal (Metcalf Philosophy & Technology , 39 , 69, 2026). They view my pessimistic predictions about widespread LLM use in humanities scholarship in terms of Debord’s (1994) understanding of spectacle. In this brief commentary, I evaluate Muttaqin et al.’s analysis. I think the Debordian lens helps us clearly understand some of the problems with technical incrementalism, but I explain how my analysis differs in several ways from Debord’s overall view and approach
Incrementalism · Pessimism · Philosophy of science · Philosophy of technology · Scholarship · Digital Humanities and Scholarship · Digital Media and Philosophy · Media, Communication, and Education
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |