In 1954, the landmark Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education ended legally enforced racial segregation in public schools, transforming America. However, there is no audio recording of the case, making it difficult for people to fully understand its impact. A partnership between the Knight Lab at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism, “Spooler.FM,” and “Oyez” has changed that by bringing history to life through artificial intelligence technology.
The project “Brown v. Board of Education Revisited” uses AI to simulate the voices of key figures in the case, including famous NAACP attorney Thurgood Marshall, using original transcripts as a guide. Listeners can hear a recreation of Marshall’s voice dismissing arguments for segregation and other powerful moments from the case.
The project was made possible by Oyez founder and Northwestern University professor emeritus Jerry Goldman and James Boggs, CEO of Spooler. They discussed how AI was used to transform an actor’s voice into that of key figures from the case. The project can be accessed on their website and provides an immersive and educational experience for those interested in civil rights history and the legal system. The impact of the Brown v. Board of Education decision is still felt today, and this project helps to keep its memory alive by bringing it to life through technology.
