Algorithm Tribalism, and The Dividing of America

The lead up to the midterm elections was frought with misinformation and narrowly focused advertising, leaving us blind to other’s points of view, and in many cases reality.  One major culprit in this media disaster has been social media, and on-line political sites that use algorithms to identify search content and direct the user to similar sites and information outlets.  Such highly focused searches only serve to reinforce our existing beliefs and point of view, leaving us blind to alternatives.  Marshal McLuhan, in his treatise: The Media is the Message, coined the term “Global Village.”  He predicted a global consciousness would evolve via media.   However, he noted that the quickness of new electronic media has decentralized our consciousness rather than enlarged it, creating multiple tribal existences, which is quite evident in politics today.  In the case of social media the tapping on “See more like this”  has created an algorithmic tribalism.  It behoves us all to be wary of such searches.  They may be helpful within the constraints of consumerism, but dangerous when it comes to ideology and politics.

–Robert Thomas, Castro Valley