By: Rut Labrada, Arts & Entertainment Editor

The VSU Anthropology Club, in partnership with Lowndes Citizens Against Data Centers (LCAD), will be hosting a screening of the documentary “Ghost in the Machine” on Monday Sept. 21 in the Student Union Theater at 5:30 p.m. 

The doors will open at 5 p.m. for the event, which is completely free and open to the public. 

The documentary investigates the secret history of AI, arguing that it is based on systems of human prejudice, such as eugenics and racism, and uses this history to frame and analyze the wider social and environmental effects of AI. 

“A lot of it talks about those early days, giving us a really nice historical approach to AI,” said Dr. Shelly Yankovskyy, adviser for the Anthropology Club. “What are the precursors to AI? That history is really fascinating, and it makes some really compelling points, so it’ll be interesting to see everyone’s takes and what they think about the movie.” 

Directed and written by filmmaker Valerie Veatch, it first premiered on Jan. 26 at the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the US, and it became available on streaming platforms, including PBS and Amazon, in September. 

Following the 1 hour 37-minute screening of “Ghost in the Machine,” the hosts of the event plan to facilitate a discussion, giving viewers a chance to ask questions or share their thoughts on the film. 

“One of our goals is just to have a venue—a space—for people to have a conversation about AI,” said Dr. Yankovskyy. “There’s only so many headlines out there right now, and AI tends to be one of them. It’s a conversational piece all over the place, so being able to have an event like this at VSU will be really nice for students and for the community to come out and ask questions or get information.” 

Previously, the VSU Anthropology Club partnered with LCAD twice this year to hold town hall meetings at the Student Union Theater where residents were invited to hear guest speakers present about the potential impacts of an AI data center on Lowndes County. 

LCAD hopes to host another similar event in the near future to continue to give community members a space to have these discussions, said Dr. Yankovskyy.