Filter Bubbles

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“Filter bubbles” is a term designated by Eli Pariser in his book The Filter Bubble: How the New Personalized Web Is Changing What We Read and How We Think. Filter bubbles represent a state of intellectual isolation that can be caused when personalized searches are created due to website algorithms guessing what users would like to see based on past searches. This can cause a situation where users become separated from information that differs from their viewpoints causing them to become more isolated into their own ideological and cultural bubbles. According to Pariser, the bubble effect may have negative implications on civil discourse. The 2016 election of president Trump has helped to breath new life into the idea that filter bubbles and user exposure to echo chambers and fake news may have detrimental effects on society and democracy as a whole.

Reactions
The extent to which personal filtering is occuring and whether or not it is having a negative or positive effect is a hotly debated topic. Although search sites such as Google or Yahoo have algorithms which can and will limit political diversity, much of the filter bubble is actually the result of the users own choices. A study by Facebook found that for every four friends on Facebook that share a common ideology, they have one friend with a differing viewpoint. People tend to be friends with those with similar tastes as themselves. This creates an environment where even though users were given the choice to click links to contrasting viewpoints, they still overwhelmingly chose to click on the articles that most mirrored their own beliefs.

The collection of data to create personalized filters for each user has been taking place for many years. Google is said to have amassed nearly 10 years of data from varying sources to help them further personalize the searches of their users. This includes data on individuals who do not have google accounts set up but have just used their services in the past.

Ethical Implications
With the increase in the use of the World Wide Web by people all over the world, the information used to create filter bubbles for users is growing at an incredible rate. Critics of filter bubbles believe that over time individuals may lose their freedom over their own social media identities and experiences due to the expansion of filter bubbles. User information collected from search engines and social media outlets is not private data and can be sold or used by the companies that collect it. A debate has begun over whether or not it the morally right thing to take user information and manipulate exposure to future information.