Another Social Media Theory Gets Blown Up

[DC_Vol]

If the person is seeking out those videos to begin with, wouldn't they go from A -> B -> C -> D on their own anyway?

I don't see how a normal, moderate, rational person embarks on a YouTube rabbit hole and at the end of it becomes a terrorist, for example. That person was effed up before they even started watching the extreme content.

I was going to vote for Hillary before an unjust algorithm got hold of me and took me down the rabbit hole.

 

[Carl Pickens]

Well, the evidence suggests the "radicalization rabbit hole" theory doesn't match the data

YouTube Algorithms Don't Turn Unsuspecting Masses Into Extremists, New Study Suggests

Wait a minute…. Wait just one minute. The messages the Russians put on Facebook sure did work… I was all in for Hillary until I saw them

 

[Carl Pickens]

I was going to vote for Hillary before an unjust algorithm got hold of me and took me down the rabbit hole.

You beat me to it

 

[Velo Vol]

If the person is seeking out those videos to begin with, wouldn't they go from A -> B -> C -> D on their own anyway?

I don't see how a normal, moderate, rational person embarks on a YouTube rabbit hole and at the end of it becomes a terrorist, for example. That person was effed up before they even started watching the extreme content.

I've certainly watched plenty of videos I wouldn't otherwise have simply because they were right next to the one I started with. Are you saying what I'm watching doesn't change my views on anything?

If that's true, why do so many people here say people get brainwashed by the "liberal media"?

 

[volkyries]

From the actual research paper:

"Of course, it is important to note several limitations of the study. .... Third, YouTube is constantly changing its features, algorithm, etc. and its user and creator populations evolve over time as well. Findings from 2020 may not mirror what would have been observed in prior years—in particular, it is possible that YouTube algorithms recommended alternative and extremist channel videos more frequently prior to the changes made in 2019."

The authors admit YouTube doesn't appear to have steered people since 2019 after YouTube changed their algorithms in response to people complained that its recommendations were steering people. To say it proved the entire theory bunk is wrong, it proves it is bunk after 2019 only.

 

[05_never_again]

I've certainly watched plenty of videos I wouldn't otherwise have simply because they were right next to the one I started with. Are you saying what I'm watching doesn't change my views on anything?

If that's true, why do so many people here say people get brainwashed by the "liberal media"?

I don't know why other people say that; you'd have to ask them.

In general, I don't think people get brainwashed by the media they consume because, particularly in the current age where the media is so fragmented, people seek out media that confirms what they already believe. It is what the contemporary media ecosystem runs on - confirmation bias. If you don't believe or trust the "liberal media," there are plenty of other options.

 

[MemphisVol77]

If that's true, why do so many people here say people get brainwashed by the "liberal media"?

Because liberal media calls far left extremists "mostly peaceful" when they riot and commit arson, and you don't have to find a YouTube rabbit hole to hear it.