Echo chambers

Between 2008 and 2009, the telecommunications industry underwent significant changes, such as the digital switch to over-the-air (OTA) and the increase in network content available for online streaming, known as over-the-top (OTT) with services like Hulu and Netflix. Like many others, I have opted for these forms of media entertainment and have abandoned cable, which is now commonly referred to as cord-cutting.

As I and others moved towards digital news and social media, we were able to find voices from all parties and sides on the internet. This allowed us to form our own opinions about events. However, some agents started spreading false information to serve their interests. Recent Pew research suggests that 62% of US citizens obtain news from social media. But this information system also has its own set of problems, one of which is the spread of inaccurate information. This gave rise to the term "fake news."

Hughes adds that geotargeting, behavioral targeting, and socio-psychographic targeting are precise and economical factors that affect our ability to control our information. In this new world, cookies and other forms make us more susceptible to individualized interaction.

When it comes to searching for news based on my behavioral pattern and individualized interaction, I sometimes feel like I am experiencing a mirroring effect or an echo chamber effect when it comes to the information I consume. Echo chambers refer to social media algorithms combined with tendencies to interact with like-minded individuals, which limits users' exposure to diverse viewpoints and encourages the adoption of more extreme ideological positions.

However, the internet offers the possibility for all views to be expressed through different social media platforms. Flaxman et al. uncover evidence for both sides of the debate, while also finding that the magnitude of the effects is relatively modest. So, there is hope not to close into an echo chamber of amplified biases.

References 

Hughes, R. (2023/in review). But at what price is free? And at what price is mediocrity?

Jang, S. M., & Kim, J. K. (2018). Third-person effects of fake news: Fake news regulation and Media Literacy Interventions. Computers in Human Behavior, 80, 295–302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.11.034 

Kitchens, B., Johnson, S. L., & Gray, P. (2020). Understanding Echo Chambers and filter bubbles: The Impact of social media on Diversification and partisan shifts in news consumption. MIS Quarterly, 44(4), 1619–1649. https://doi.org/10.25300/misq/2020/16371 

Prince, J., & Greenstein, S. (2016). Measuring consumer preferences for video content provision via cord-cutting behavior. Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 26(2), 293–317. https://doi.org/10.1111/jems.12181