Oguz, Hasan (2025) Authoritarian Recursions: How Fiction, History, and AI Reinforce Control in Education, Warfare, and Discourse. [Preprint]

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Abstract

The growing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into military, educational, and propaganda systems raises urgent ethical challenges related to autonomy, bias, and the erosion of human oversight. This study employs a mixed-methods approach—combining historical analysis, speculative fiction critique, and contemporary case studies—to examine how AI technologies may reproduce structures of authoritarian control.

Drawing parallels between Nazi-era indoctrination systems, the fictional Skynet AI from \textit{The Terminator}, and present-day deployments of AI in classrooms, battlefields, and digital media, the study identifies recurring patterns of harm. These include unchecked autonomy, algorithmic opacity, surveillance normalization, and the amplification of structural bias. In military contexts, lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) undermine accountability and challenge compliance with international humanitarian law. In education, AI-driven learning platforms and surveillance technologies risk reinforcing ideological conformity and suppressing intellectual agency. Meanwhile, AI-powered propaganda systems increasingly manipulate public discourse through targeted content curation and disinformation.

The findings call for a holistic ethical framework that integrates lessons from history, critical social theory, and technical design. To mitigate recursive authoritarian risks, the study advocates for robust human-in-the-loop architectures, algorithmic transparency, participatory governance, and the integration of critical AI literacy into policy and pedagogy.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Oguz, Hasan hoguz17@posta.pau.edu.tr 0000-0001-7484-4415
Additional Information:	This paper is revised with a name change
Keywords:	AI ethics, algorithmic bias, autonomous weapons, educational technology, surveillance capitalism, critical AI literacy
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Artificial Intelligence > AI and Ethics Specific Sciences > Artificial Intelligence
Depositing User:	Dr. Hasan Oguz
Date Deposited:	11 Apr 2025 15:03
Last Modified:	11 Apr 2025 15:03
Item ID:	25041
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Artificial Intelligence > AI and Ethics Specific Sciences > Artificial Intelligence
Date:	25 March 2025
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/25041

Available Versions of this Item

• Educating the Machine: Ethical Imperatives for AI in Military and Educational Systems Through Historical and Fictional Lenses. (deposited 09 Apr 2025 14:40)
  • Authoritarian Recursions: How Fiction, History, and AI Reinforce Control in Education, Warfare, and Discourse. (deposited 11 Apr 2025 15:03) [Currently Displayed]

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