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Episode 57Apr 10, 2018

Can big data really bring the world closer together?

What color is your algorithm light saber?

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A woman looks at her phone as she walks inside an exhibition center in Shanghai on September 8, 2017.
A woman looks at her phone as she walks inside an exhibition center in Shanghai on September 8, 2017.
CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP/Getty Images

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As we taped this week’s episode, Mark Zuckerberg was about to begin his testimony in front of Congress. Lawmakers are expecting an explanation for how Facebook’s self-professed mission to “bring the world closer together” gave way to its current privacy fiasco. But is data collection and use always the bad guy? Nancy Lublin, founder and CEO of Crisis Text Line, says no. Her nonprofit offers emergency, anonymous counseling to millions via text messaging. And now she’s launching a for-profit arm called Loris AI that uses data from more than 63 million messages to “make the world a more empathetic place.” We’ll talk with her about it, but first we’ll hear from a Make Me Smart listener who has a front-row seat to the current international trade drama via her job in imports and exports in Erie, Pennsylvania. Plus, Sen. Elizabeth Warren answers our Make Me Smart question.