Cis-heteronormative couples in Google Images.

A multimodal critical discourse analysis

Abstract

Recent research has increasingly exposed the meaning-making potential of AI systems across a range of AI-coded platforms, particularly highlighting their tendency to reproduce deep-rooted gender- and sex-discrimination (cf. Bolukbasi et al. 2016; Noble 2018). While much of this work has focused on marginalised groups, the present study shifts attention to the normalised subjects of coupledom, i. e., cis-heteronormative couples, to examine how dominant ide-ologies are naturalised in the outputs of AI-based search engines. Adopting a Multimodal Critical Discourse Analysis approach, this study investigates how the visual and verbal modes combine in Google Images when querying the linguistically unmarked terms couples and coppie in the British and Italian digital landscapes respectively.

Findings reveal that Google Images’ multimodal representation of cis-heteronormative couples aligns with socio-cultural norms entrenched in what is the Western basic default norm of conceiving coupledom. While specific patterns emerge in each digital landscape, both datasets reproduce neoliberal imaginaries of coupledom where idyllic relational success, self-optimisation and aestheticised desirability marginalise alternative couple forms and reinforce the monolithicity of cis-heteronormative coupledom.

By comparing data from two distinct cultural contexts, this study demonstrates the relevance of MCDA for uncovering how AI-based search engines visually and verbally reinforce dominant norms. While data reflect a specific socio-cultural and temporal snapshot of each digital landscape, the findings illustrate how Google Images systematically reproduces normative couple models across both the Italian and British contexts.