Spanning the years 1957-77, this video essay presents a sampling of early cinematic and televisual articulations of the relationship between humans and computers. The "Humanist Critique"path in this project explores the repeated assertions of human supremacy across film and TV in greater depth. However the core tropes of the era are apparent in this brief montage, beginning with the characterization of computers as electronic or artificial brains, conceived and designed as allegories for human consciousness. The apparent threat posed by these examples of "artificial intelligence" manifests through dehumanizing or destructive encounters with humans, who are subsequently reminded of their essential humanness. Distinctly human qualities such as empathy, loyalty and love provide the greatest sources of reassurance, while the computer's association with their mechanical opposites (e.g., the absence of passion, anger or weakness) are associated with a misguided or fascistic technocratic fetishization of technology.

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