– For example, the topic of immigrants is often discussed on the Internet in a politically incorrect way. The author can check the text from the point of view of the potential for conflict and see that some designations are not good, it is better to replace them. I work as a forensic expert, I conduct linguistic examinations and I observe how conflicts have been growing in society in recent years. In disputes, people speak harshly, their statements become the subject of lawsuits for insult, protection of honor, dignity and business reputation, explains Anna Plotnikova, a professor at the Department of Fundamental and Applied Linguistics.
However, it is not only about the words, but also about the context used. If older people are called old people or pensioners, they will have no reason to be offended. But they will definitely not like it when people say “old men and old women” about them. However, if the same words appear in a quote from “The Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish”, no one will have any questions. Although, if we act formally, Pushkin will also enter the distribution.
– We try to take into account some aspects of the context. The program analyzes the immediate environment, calculating in which meaning the word is used. After all, there are homonyms, words that sound the same, and there is polysemy. All these nuances, of course, are still to be worked out,” says Anna Plotnikova.
It is impossible to create such a service once and for all: the language lives and is constantly being updated. Just remember how many times in recent years the correct name for people with disabilities has changed (yes, this is exactly what is accepted now).
By the way, not only the content, but also the technical part of the service was handled by specialists from the Center for Digital Humanities. The linguists wrote the program themselves! We can say that Ural philologists ensure peace and harmony in society. But they still insist: we are not talking about censorship at all. The program does not perform automatic replacements, but offers options. The author of the text has the right to agree with one of the options, or he can ignore everything, leaving the original word.
– When information about the service appeared on social networks, people thought that we were talking about control and prohibition. No, this is the desire for successful, conflict-free and harmonious communication. By the way, we work within the framework of the project “Human well-being in conditions of digitalization,” Anna points out.
Note: There are analogues on the market designed for the English language, for example, the Angry Translator program – a translator from the “bad” language to the “good”. For Russians, such programs did not exist before. The Ural development will appear on the Internet for free.
