Filter Bubble, are we living in smaller bubbles?

[ElizabethB]

I just finished the book The Filter Bubble by Eli Pariser. It is very interesting, and talks about how Facebook and Google are starting to narrow down what we see. He warns that this could lead to a lack of serendipity and creativity.

 

It is well worth reading. Here is a TED talk he did that has a little of what is covered in the book, although the book is much better and much more in depth:

 

http://blog.ted.com/2011/05/02/beware-online-filter-bubbles-eli-pariser-on-ted-com/

 

Anyway, I think that this is happening also in the neighborhoods people live in and their news--when I was growing up, neighborhoods were much more diverse. Here is a thread about people trying to broaden their news and read both sides:

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=271595&highlight=real+clear+politics+news

 

Is what you see here more diverse than your neighborhood? (Besides the homeschooling thing!)

[lisamarie]

I used to live in a much more diverse neighborhood that was in the city--racially, life style wise, politically, etc. I moved out into the suburbs 4 years ago and am surprised when I see someone not of my race. I think there are only 3 households in the entire subdivision that are not white. Despite that, DD5 did have quite a mix in her kindergarten class this year.

 

On here, there is definitely a much larger base on everything. There are people here who are so far opposite of my own views and lifestyle, and there are people who are right there with me. Living in suburbia, you just don't get as much of the drastic differences.

 

Now that said, maybe my neighbors are drastically different from me, but I don't know them well enough to know that. I chat with a few of them but would never have a "real" conversation IYKWIM.

[ElizabethB]

I used to live in a much more diverse neighborhood that was in the city--racially, life style wise, politically, etc. I moved out into the suburbs 4 years ago and am surprised when I see someone not of my race. I think there are only 3 households in the entire subdivision that are not white. Despite that, DD5 did have quite a mix in her kindergarten class this year.

 

 

 

Interesting--people who live in a big city might have a much different answer than those that live in the suburbs. We move a lot, but most of the places we have been stationed at were nearer to suburbs than big cities, the suburbs seem to me to be getting less diverse but cities may not be.

[Heather in Neverland]

Actually I grew up in a very homogeneous neighborhood. My school, my church, everyone was exactly alike. It is one of the reasons why I LOVE living here... our lives are so much richer now that we live in a really diverse area.

[ElizabethB]

Actually I grew up in a very homogeneous neighborhood. My school, my church, everyone was exactly alike. It is one of the reasons why I LOVE living here... our lives are so much richer now that we live in a really diverse area.

 

You may be skewing my poll! :lol::lol::lol:

[LibraryLover]

Interesting...

Edited June 9, 2011 by LibraryLover

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I just finished the book The Filter Bubble by Eli Pariser. It is very interesting, and talks about how Facebook and Google are starting to narrow down what we see. He warns that this could lead to a lack of serendipity and creativity.

 

It is well worth reading. Here is a TED talk he did that has a little of what is covered in the book, although the book is much better and much more in depth:

 

http://blog.ted.com/2011/05/02/beware-online-filter-bubbles-eli-pariser-on-ted-com/

 

Anyway, I think that this is happening also in the neighborhoods people live in and their news--when I was growing up, neighborhoods were much more diverse. Here is a thread about people trying to broaden their news and read both sides:

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=271595&highlight=real+clear+politics+news

 

Is what you see here more diverse than your neighborhood? (Besides the homeschooling thing!)

 

I could only cast a vote on the bubble question, because I think that the board represents much of what I see in the real world. Of course you can isolate yourself if you want to.

 

But I can also set up a foreign news site as my home page and get it translated with one click. I can read BBC anytime I want, where I used to have to go out of my way to get that. I can find opinions on science and history and politics that come from any number of views. If I tend to give credence to those that agree with me, well that is probably human nature.

 

But I grew up in a semi-rural area. I listened to top 40 radio, where a little bit of punk was "edgy". There were only three blacks in my high school classes and only one Asian. My bubble now is so much larger than it was back then.

 

I still think that there are some answers that are more right than others. But I'm not shocked to find that there are other people with other views and experiences.

 

And it does amuse me a bit to consider that for some people, I am the diverse pov that they rarely encounter in real life.

[Wildiris]

Our neighborhood is static. Few people move in or out. I've lived here for 20 years and I am still a "new" person.

 

Here, on this forum it is at times amazingly diverse while at the same time predominantly Christian conservative. I wonder if participation here shadows my internet searches.

 

On the internet, I do find what comes up on a Google search is very narrow. This concerns me. There is the illusion of having information at ones finger tips, but this is not true. Information is selected to confirm ones political views and maintain buying habits. Nothing controversial, no opposing view points to challenge, and who is control of all this anyway?

 

I came across Pariser's TED talk last week, but since you've read the book, I wanted to know if Pariser offered any alternatives to the Google user. What were his parting words to his readers?

[SweetBean]

I live in a very diverse neighborhood, and I like it that way.

[ElizabethB]

On the internet, I do find what comes up on a Google search is very narrow. This concerns me. There is the illusion of having information at ones finger tips, but this is not true. Information is selected to confirm ones political views and maintain buying habits. Nothing controversial, no opposing view points to challenge, and who is control of all this anyway?

 

I came across Pariser's TED talk last week, but since you've read the book, I wanted to know if Pariser offered any alternatives to the Google user. What were his parting words to his readers?

 

He actually didn't offer up to much in the way of things individuals could do except to try to try out new websites every once in a while.

 

He mostly talked about how people had to be aware of the problem and things that Google and Facebook could do to help fix the problem.

 

I think that, like he explained, people don't realize how much Google and Facebook are now filtering what they see to be less diverse. I had read something a while ago about how Google was personalizing search, but hadn't thought about it or its implications before reading the book.

[ElizabethB]

But I can also set up a foreign news site as my home page and get it translated with one click. I can read BBC anytime I want, where I used to have to go out of my way to get that. I can find opinions on science and history and politics that come from any number of views. If I tend to give credence to those that agree with me, well that is probably human nature.

 

 

I also personally use the internet to broaden news that I see and hear...but many people don't.

 

And, his main point is that with Google's new personalized search, people will not get as much diversity in their search...they will only see things that they like. While that is good in some ways, it does filter out new ideas and decrease creativity. And, if you can't opt out and you don't realize it, your world will be shrinking gradually without you realizing it.

 

For example, I track how high the phrase "sight words" comes up with my sight word page on Google and Yahoo. Now, it comes up high on my personal Google search but not as high if I search on a freind's computer or my phone.

 

He also talks about how a similar Facebook problem dropped down how often his conservative friends appeared on his wall or news or something. (I don't do Facebook, so I can't recall the exact terminology.)

 

He makes the point that the internet used to be much more open and broadening but now it's starting to put people in smaller bubbles.

[Margo out of lurking]

For the most part, I don't know my neighbors, and I certainly don't know their political leanings. Our wide social circle extends from church (conservative, mostly hsers) and a soccer league--a Christian homeschool soccer league. We are definitely in a bubble.

 

So yes, this list is quite a bit more diverse, and that's one of the reasons I appreciate it so much.