21st Century Circle Jerk: Echo Chambers in the Digital World

“The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept.”
― George Carlin”

We may already be familiar with the idea of “the echo chamber” when it comes to politics, though some have called its role in political polarization overstated (https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20180416-the-myth-of-the-online-echo-chamber). For the purposes of this meetup though, I’d like to explore the ways we may be using the digital world as a validation soundboard for our whole spectrum of beliefs--as well as the ways it may be using us.

So what is an echo chamber, metaphorically speaking? It’s basically the idea of putting yourself in an environment where the only media or opinions you consume validate what you already think is true. You’re constantly hearing your own thoughts “echoed” back to you.

As you can imagine, there are negatives associated with this. Namely, we cannot grow if we are never challenged to think through a different perspective. Consider all the truths that may be missed if we are more focused on feeling right, rather than finding that which may be more objectively right, or at least worthy of discussion.

And yet, search engines and social media platforms work against us by catering to us, perhaps too much. If I search something on Google, it’s likely that I will get a different set of top results compared to someone in a different demographic than me. We are said to be living in an “information age,” but this knowledge available at our fingertips is carefully crafted to engage rather than educate.

Do you embrace this atmosphere? Or do you challenge yourself to break it when possible? What are the implications of a digital culture that is becoming increasingly personalized and fragmented? Can we trust ourselves to question our sources when they make us feel so warm and fuzzy with validation?

To these questions and more I hope to hear your arguments.

Icebreaker this week: What are your most visited websites and how well do they know you? What does your content profile look like, or how does it differ between different websites?

See you soon,

Shelby