The content you see on a given social media app isn’t random – it’s highly curated content specifically made for you. And it is curated by recommendation algorithms. These algorithms are designed to keep you on the social media app you are using for as long as possible and they do that by learning what you like and showing you more of that type of content. But is this always a good thing? In this episode of Above the Noise, Myles explores how these recommendation algorithms can help you feel seen and build community while also potentially trapping you in filter bubbles where you are only served content that reinforces what you believe.
TEACHERS: Guide your students to practice civil discourse about current topics and get practice writing CER (claim, evidence, reasoning) responses. Explore lesson supports.
Why do you see what you see online and on social media?
What content you see on a given social app or search engine isn’t random– it’s super curated content. And it’s curated by recommendation algorithms. Recommendation algorithms are essentially the computer instructions for how a given social app or search engine decides what to show you.
How do recommendation algorithms work?
Basically, these algorithms are designed to keep you on a given social app for as long as possible. They do that by learning what you like and showing you more of that content. They consider a bunch of stuff when deciding what to show you. For instance, they collect data on what we’re watching, clicking, liking, commenting, sharing, buying, where we live, etc. They also consider what everyone else is liking and watching too. But exactly what and how all these things are ranked to give you the content that shows up in your feed is top secret. Plus, companies are constantly tweaking and changing their algorithms.