{"text":[[{"start":8.59,"text":"For anyone seeking a definition of corporate bullshit, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella has helpfully produced this distillation. On the topic of AI, he wrote a few months ago: “We need to get beyond the arguments of slop vs sophistication and develop a new equilibrium in terms of our ‘theory of the mind’ that accounts for humans being equipped with these new cognitive amplifier tools as we relate to each other.” "}],[{"start":35.519999999999996,"text":"This jumble — a classic “word salad” that tosses abstract nouns about — conveys cleverness but means very little."}],[{"start":45.809999999999995,"text":"Before any Microsoft employee emails to defend their leader, let me suggest that, according to a recent study by Cornell University, if you are swayed by Nadella’s words you might be bad at your job. It found that workers receptive to corporate bullshit (defined as “misleadingly impressive” nonsense, or “noise masquerading as insight”) showed lower levels of analytic thinking and decision-making. "}],[{"start":74.53999999999999,"text":"There is some consolation — apparently, they also score highly on job satisfaction and see their boss as “visionary and transformational”. Susceptible, maybe, but also happy."}],[{"start":88.49,"text":"To reach this conclusion, researcher Shane Littrell created a “corporate bullshit generator” drawing on business quotes and annual reports to come up with empty corporatese, for example: “Working at the intersection of cross-collateralisation and blue-sky thinking, we will actualise a renewed level of cradle-to-grave credentialing.” Here’s another: “By getting our friends in the tent with our best practices, we will pressure test a renewed level of adaptive coherence.”"}],[{"start":119.41999999999999,"text":"Participants in the experiment (mostly from corporate backgrounds, including human resources, accounting, finance, marketing, and administration) rated the bullshit on a “business-savvy” scale before taking ability tests. And there’s a growing niche for academic research by these so-called bullshitologists. The pioneer was US philosopher Harry Frankfurt, whose 1986 essay declared: “One of the most salient features of our culture is that there is so much bullshit.” Unlike lying, which implies wilful deceit, bullshitters are indifferent to the truth. As Frankfurt puts it, they do “not care whether [they] describe reality correctly”."}],[{"start":161.60999999999999,"text":"No doubt, social media has helped encourage bullshit along with the growth of the armchair expert: these people can express views on the Strait of Hormuz, the economics of restaurant sharing plates, and Matthieu Blazy’s latest collection for Chanel, all within a minute. The danger was reinforced for me the other week when I was invited on to a radio show to discuss a view I’d expressed on Bluesky. I declined, confessing I’d already revealed the sum of my knowledge, approximately 80 words deep. "}],[{"start":196.04,"text":"But LinkedIn’s algorithm seems to reward posts that read like actual nonsense. Little wonder, as business life is a rich seam for bullshit, with roles springing up that are impenetrable to outsiders. The cast of Friends had a go at articulating this when Monica and Rachel tried to describe Chandler Bing’s work. “Something to do with numbers”, before landing on a made-up job title, “transponster”. "}],[{"start":223.89,"text":"The late anthropologist David Graeber’s term “bullshit jobs” chimed with those frustrated by (or in) a growing category of white-collar jobs, whose work is “so completely pointless, unnecessary, or pernicious that even the employee cannot justify its existence”."}],[{"start":244.63,"text":"It is no surprise that ambitious workers encouraged to “fake it till you make it” deploy strings of buzzwords in the hope of career advancement or to deflect attention from shortcomings. After all, the tone is often set from the top, with obfuscating CEOs."}],[{"start":261.98,"text":"To curb its pernicious spread, a previous group of academics recommended a new framework. Comprehend why bullshit exists; Recognise when it is produced; know how to Act against it; and Prevent it from occurring. I won’t spell it out."}],[{"start":287.50000000000006,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1774857491_2245.mp3"}