media update’s Talisa Jansen van Rensburg takes a look at five of the most frequently asked questions surrounding filter bubbles in order to better educate newsreaders.
Most of the time, people aren’t even aware of filter bubbles or the influence they have on individuals directly when it comes to their opinion regarding certain topics covered in the media.
Having a better understanding of what these ‘bubbles’ are and the harmful way in which they influence the world allows you to learn how to obtain
unbiased information covered in the news, or rather, topics that are covered
objectively.
So, without further ado, let’s five into the five FAQs about filter bubbles:
1. What is a filter bubble?
A filter bubble is when a person “
only hears or sees news and information that supports what they already believe.” Users, therefore, encounter a ‘filter bubble’, every time they disengage with certain information.
For example, when someone comes across a post that they don’t like or agree with, they can simply block the post, unfollow that account or steer clear of a specific hashtag, which means that they will no longer receive information surrounding that topic. Or, they will receive information from that topic but only from one perspective, i.e., the perspective they
want to see.
2. How do filter bubbles affect me?
Social media platforms use algorithms to pick up on what users like and dislike in an effort to keep people coming back for more. Once this is done, the algorithm starts working out what content to show you based on your interests, leaving you to only receive news about a certain topic.
For example, let’s say that you don’t want to follow the EFF’s movement regarding the Clicks and TRESemmé advertisement, but you
still want to know what’s happening regarding that topic. All you have to do is block a few posts that discuss EFF and engage more with Clicks’ content, and Instagram or Facebook will then stop showing you any information surrounding the South African political organisation.
3. Are filter bubbles a problem?
According to Eli Pariser, filter bubbles are harmful to
‘the general society’ as it makes people more vulnerable to "propaganda and manipulation". So, yes, filter bubbles are
really a problem that
all readers need to address, not only those who work in the media industry.
While the industry is responsible for educating readers on
what filter bubbles are and why they are a problem, consumers also need to critically look at the content they read and actively seek out alternative viewpoints, or at least, understand that there are a variety of viewpoints outside of their own.
4. How can we ‘pop’ the filter bubbles?
The first thing that consumers need to be made aware of is that “
it will be very hard for people to watch or consume something that has not, in some sense, been tailored for them,” says Eric Schmidt, an American businessman. This means that just ‘popping’ a filter bubble is not that straight forward.
This is especially true when considering that most content is alternated to suit a specific audience. Thus, the best way to ‘pop’ the bubble is by steering clear of getting your news from social media platforms and being
open to
reading news from different newspapers or news channels.
Readers have to get into the habit of reading various viewpoints on the same issues to get a more well-rounded understanding of the news.
5. What is the Filter Bubble Transparency Act?
This is the act that requires “
big tech companies to disclose how their algorithms work,” meaning that they should be able to say
why people receive certain content.
“
The Filter Bubble Transparency Act would mandate that certain major websites offer greater transparency about when their algorithms are being utilised to tailor results or feeds based on a user’s search history, likes or geographical location.” This is according to Govtrack, a government transparency website.
Not
all news is objective, that is why you always hear people say ‘don’t believe everything that you read’. Online and social media news is tailored to
specific people; therefore, when you go online or login to social media platforms for news, you need to keep an open mind and remember that not everything you read is true. You might need to do more research regarding the information that you just read.
The user also needs to make a point of seeing alternative viewpoints in order to get a better and fuller understanding of the topic.
What is your opinion on filter bubbles? Do you think that they’re harmful? Be sure to let us know in the comments section below.
Filter bubbles aren’t the only thing people in the media need to be worried about. Check out The problem with the media industry in 2020 to learn more.
*Image courtesy of Canva