New York’s Madison Square Garden’s facial recognition blacklisting sparks outcry

A file photo shows the arena during the PBR Unleash the Beast Bull Riding competition at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The heated debate over facial recognition technology has a new flashpoint – Manhattan’s celebrated Madison Square Garden, home to the New York Knicks basketball team and countless Billy Joel concerts. The operator of the arena is under fire for using the software to identify and eject lawyers from events over ongoing litigation. — AFP

NEW YORK: The heated debate over facial recognition technology has a new flashpoint: Manhattan’s celebrated Madison Square Garden, home to the New York Knicks basketball team and countless Billy Joel concerts.

The operator of the arena, where Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali in 1971’s “Fight of the Century”, is under fire for using the software to identify and eject certain lawyers from events at the venue – because they are associated with ongoing litigation involving MSG.