Information circulation in social media

A strange merging of many old and new ideas about political communication and democracy, social media has become the center-stage for debate, distribution of (mis/dis) information, and a channel through which news can spread very quickly. 

While the jury is still out as to whether social media is a help or hindrance to political communication in America, its impact on public engagement is without question. At its best, social media serves as an extension of the town hall. The town hall can be extended to a select group, a specific region, or the entire world. There is a lot of resting potential energy in such connectivity. People publicly engage with one another, sometimes in eloquent debate but often indulging in the superficial bicker that left Walter Lippman shaking his head at the common citizen in the twentieth century. 

At its worst, social media operates as Lippman theorized the news media should operate: controlled. While Lippman argued for a formulated public opinion disseminated by the elites, social media has developed algorithms that control what the public sees through their platforms, and when. While this filtered interaction with news media is not done by the choosing of the public, we do have the ability to select our not only our audience, but also our speakers through social media. This, in effect, grants the public permission to silo themselves off from one another, collecting information that supports their point of view and rarely viewing anything that opposes. No longer are people required to present their opinion for public critique in front of an actual town hall, instead they can selectively share their thoughts with those most likely to agree with them. The result of these echo-chambers is severe polarization and vulnerability to misinformation and disinformation. 

Social media platforms themselves cannot be categorized as being inherently positive or negative on our information consumption or how we engage with one another. It is how we use these channels that distinguishes whether they are strengthening or weakening our ability to think critically and participate in democratic debate. 

When is the last time you ventured beyond the parameters of your own social sphere?