The China Post
Date: April 25, 2017
By: Youkung Lee, AP
SEOUL — Taiwan’s “digital minister” Audrey Tang, a computer prodigy and entrepreneur
In this April 12, 2017 photo, Taiwan’s digital minister Audrey Tang speaks during an interview in Seoul. Tang, a computer prodigy and entrepreneur who taught herself programming when she was 8, hopes to use the internet to transform public involvement in government. She says she finds President Donald Trump’s Twitter posts refreshing. (AP)
who taught herself programming at age 8, says she’s a “civic hacker,” who like a locksmith uses specialized skills to help rather than harm.
Appointed by leaders hoping to better connect with young voters who helped sweep independence-leaning President Tsai Ing-wen into office last year, 35-year-old Tang is using her expertise to more directly involve the public in policymaking, and to counter “fake news.”
“Just by getting people to listen to the ideas that they don’t like, basically, develops their immune systems,” Tang said in an interview with The Associated Press while visiting Seoul for the annual Codegate international hacking competition.
“If people have already considered carefully even the position of people they don’t agree with, they already have some kind of inoculation in their mind, so that they will not fall victim to rumors,” she said. [FULL STORY]
