In this exploration beyond the Web3 ecosystem, I delve into the pervasive influence of social media platforms on global information dissemination. Specifically, I investigate how these platforms may inadvertently facilitate the spread of misinformation through their algorithmic designs.
Let’s begin with a question.
Imagine there’s a Person A who shares many of your personal opinions and consistently validates your beliefs on certain matters. Then there’s Person B, who openly challenges your opinions in front of others and tends to discredit them as incorrect. Over an extended period, which person would you prefer to spend more time with?
I suspect that 99% of people would choose Person A.
Now, let’s delve into this further.
Plato’s Cave:
Drawing inspiration from Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, we find a striking parallel to the modern phenomenon of misinformation propagation through social media. Plato’s hypothetical scenario involves prisoners confined within a cave, bound and facing the walls, utterly unaware of the world beyond. There is fire nearby. They rely solely on echoes and shadows cast by nearby objects to form their perceptions. Over time, these prisoners come to believe that these shadows are tangible entities and the echoes, their voices.
When a prisoner finally breaks free from the cave’s confines and steps towards the blinding light, the transition is tumultuous. The intensity of the light is overwhelming, causing discomfort and strain on their unaccustomed eyes. Focusing on shadows seems the safer option, as they cling to their previous beliefs. Gradually, as the prisoner advances toward the cave’s entrance, the sight of the sun is both painful and enlightening. As they venture into the outside world, encountering their reflection in water, the realization dawns that the shadows were mere reflections, not the reality they once perceived. This newfound understanding unveils an entirely different world, shattering the illusions they once held dear.
Prisoner goes to his inmate friends still in the cave to make them aware of this understanding. Once the prisoner enters the dark cave again he his not able to see in the dark. He shares his newfound un]derstanding with the inmates, and asks them to venture into the real world. The inmates afraid that they will lose their sense of seeing completely deny the prisoners understanding and they ask him to leave them alone. They plan to kill anyone who asks them to venture outside of this cave in this fear of losing their vision.
Social Media Algorithm’s
Currently, social media algorithms are crafted to continuously serve users content aligned with their previous viewing habits, effectively reinforcing a narrow range of recommendations. This phenomenon mirrors Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, wherein prisoners hesitate and resist leaving the cave due to their familiarity with the shadows on the wall, which they have come to accept as their reality over a lifetime. Analogously, in today’s digital era, individuals frequently find solace in their own information “caves” or echo chambers.
Much like Plato’s prisoners in the cave, individuals navigating the vast landscape of social media platforms often find themselves ensnared in echo chambers, unwittingly absorbing distorted versions of reality. This parallel underscores the crucial need to scrutinize the algorithms governing these platforms and their potential role in perpetuating misinformation. By shedding light on this issue, we can strive for a more informed, discerning digital landscape for all users.
Users of social media platforms try to shun away opinions that don’t match with their own. This creates an echo chamber of sorts where in all the people are reinforcing the same information and knowledge to every other person and this in turn is creating a feedback loop of similar information.
Now let’s this piece of information is false, it means that now inside this filter bubble everyone starts believing in that information, which helps spread misinformation at a very fast rate. At the same time people shun away all the opinions that they don’t share, creating a misinformation cycle.
It could be argued that the utilisation of RLHF (Reinforcement Learning by Human Feedback), the pivotal innovation behind ChatGPT, inadvertently reinforces widely accepted but potentially false information. RLHF relies on the assumption that the majority opinion is correct, which may not always be the case. This can lead to a form of “groupthink” where alternative or minority viewpoints are not adequately represented.
One can also argue that TikTok uses it’s powerful algorithm and plato’s inmate mindsets to feed misinformation to it’s users in form of video content ( the most common and powerful format of feeding information)
In today’s world, nearly everyone resides within some form of an echo chamber. Those who rely entirely on social media platforms for information inhabit the most extensive echo chambers. The size diminishes for individuals who practice “DYOR” (Do Your Own Research) for the information they consume. In the contemporary landscape, where sifting through news on social media is far more convenient than conducting independent research, almost everyone leans on it for the sake of convenience in gathering information.
Consider a scenario where platforms like Youtube and Twitter suddenly inundate you with tweets, videos, and opinions that contradict your beliefs. As previously mentioned, you might find yourself distancing from these platforms. While some users may increase their usage to seek out accurate information, this segment of the market is significantly smaller compared to its current state.
Imagine if these companies deliberately fine-tuned their algorithms to ensure users never encounter opposing viewpoints, effectively constructing a worldwide echo chamber. It’s worth considering that social media platforms have little motivation to do this.
This isn’t to claim that it’s currently happening, but it’s certainly something worth contemplating. There are promising solutions, like X’s community notes feature, which enhances information access. Perhaps decentralized social media platforms could be a viable path forward.
Ironically I’m sharing this article on one such platform.
P.S : I’m not an expert in Platonism, these are just random thoughts with some analogies.
P.P.S : I was a bit high when I was writing this.
