Slashdot Mirror
62% Americans Get News On Social Media (journalism.org)
More people in the United States are now turning to social media instead of traditional media for news. According to Pew Research Center, which surveyed over 4,500 people with various backgrounds, an increasingly number of Americans -- 62% to be exact -- are getting their news from social media platforms such as Facebook, and Instagram. Of the 62% people, 66% of them get their news from Facebook, 23% from Instagram, 21% from YouTube, and 19% from LinkedIn. From a Huffington Post article: It's easy to believe you're getting diverse perspectives when you see stories on Facebook. You're connected not just to many of your friends, but also to friends of friends, interesting celebrities and publications you "like." But Facebook shows you what it thinks you'll be interested in. The social network pays attention to what you interact with, what your friends share and comment on, and overall reactions to a piece of content, lumping all of these factors into an algorithm that serves you items you're likely to engage with. It's a simple matter of business: Facebook wants you coming back, so it wants to show you things you'll enjoy.
Trump. Facebook. Angry Birds the Movie.
Idiocracy is here.
I don't respond to AC's.
I've been guilty on occasion, but truth is we are more and more becoming citizens of the Wall-E concept. Someday you'll simply sip a slurpy from your robotic recliner.
Some people are even getting news from sites like Slashdot, though there's some dispute as whether that counts as social media or antisocial media.
Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
I'll go further and say that applies to Congress, state governments, county governments and even down to city governments. They're either corrupt, incompetent, or both.
They say you get the government you deserve. I think the article explains a lot.
Most of my friends find news that reinforces their view of the world, never seeking out news that might challenge their viewpoints or require that they think. Take the 2016 election. There are plenty of emotional reasons to support Hillary, Bernie or Trump. But if you the analyze past elections, the 2008, 2012 and 2016 electoral maps, and fundraising capabilities, Hillary is going to win the White House with the least effort because all the numbers are in her favor.
They say you get the government you deserve.
That's because most people don't bother to vote. The 2014 election had the lowest national voter turnout in 72 years with 36% of registered voters casting a vote. A minority of citizens are deciding the government for the majority of citizens.
"Terrifying" is right. What the approach used by Facebook's is clearly doing is creating an echo chamber so people mostly only get to see views that match their own, with all that entails for producing a skewed outlook on the world that is mostly based on the misperception that the overwhelming majority takes a similar view. Interestingly, it's not just happening on the conventional social media sites; there's a similar thing going on over on the BBC news site at the moment - in particular around the UK's EU referendum, but also around several other topics in various sections of the site. Check out any of the stories relating to the referendum where the BBC has enabled comments, sort by rating, and it's a classic echo chamber; all (and I do mean ALL) of the highest rated comments are pro-exit, critical of perceived bias in the BBC's coverage, and throwing insults at those with a pro-remain view - quite often demonstrating ignorance of facts and an amazing degree of bigotry and bias in the process.
The self-deception is incredibly strong - easily in line with that 99.5% figure cited in your quote; there was one post that made me laugh (the Lulz at the more idiotic comments are the only reason I read them) about how all the polls (which mostly have it as a close-run thing with remain usually slightly ahead) must be wrong "because no one ever posts a pro-remain comment on the BBC". Someone being unaware they are viewing biased data and having their opinions skewed on a social media site is one thing; it's mostly gossip and celebrity "news" that has little bearing on the big picture anyway. That a similar thing is also happening on mainstream news sites relating to topics that will quite possible have a lasting influence on millions of people for generations is deeply concerning, as is the growning lack of any openness to consideration of alternative viewpoints, let alone some critical thinking about the topic, amongst the masses.
UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
Media have always provided what the masses want to see. Not only tabloids (which only makes the skewed reporting more visible), not only politically motivated publications but even media that intends to provide unbiased facts. Until we can create real AI with no bias to do our reporting can we expect that to change - all humans are biased, at best we can be aware of that and try to mitigate somewhat.
But even when we have AIs we will still get biased reporting. That's the way we want it - that's the way we gonna get it.
You're confusing cause and effect. The average citizen is well aware that their vote is meaningless.
That's not diverse, that's balkanized. It has all those things and more I'm sure, but each is in its own little ghetto, and most people rarely stray far from their own 'hood.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."