Those Elusive Algorithmic Harms: A Comment on Bar-Gill and Sunstein, Algorithmic Harm

Can we talk about harms of algorithms—of anything—without comparing them to the benefits? In Algorithmic Harm, Bar-Gill and Sunstein develop a theoretical framework to assess the impact of algorithms in consumer markets, focusing on harmful manipulation of unsophisticated buyers. But the same framework yields additional insights, not explored in the book—how algorithmic targeting and personalized prices benefit this same group of consumers. In this contribution to the book symposium, I examine this missing part, suggesting that algorithms’ ability to recognize different consumers often yields treatments favorable to weaker groups of consumers—an effect richly documented in the empirical economic literature. Absent a fuller account of both the offsetting benefits from algorithmic targeting, it is premature to recommend policy interventions that limit various uses of algorithms in markets populated by unsophisticated consumers.