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Just as I Thought!

How Algorithms Use Feeling Connected Against Us

Being connected to our social support system is generally believed to be a healthy use of social media. Also, keeping abreast of news, politics, global ecology, medical advancements, and the economy motivates us to connect using social media and online websites. My recent blog on the issue of homophily points out that we prefer to connect with those who are like us, and we follow content that mirrors what we already believe and think (Bonato, 2020).

It is all so convenient, yet there is a downside; cognitive bias (flawed thinking) clouds our judgement and social media content plays to our flawed thinking (Ciampaglia &  Menczer, 2018). Algorithms use homophily to connect us to more ‘alike’ content, which in turn can result in confirmation bias, in other words focusing on information that we already believe which seems to confirm our prior beliefs (Pennycook, Cannon, & Rand, 2018).

Two professors present the results of a study on the subject and they say,

The fact that low-credibility content spreads so quickly and easily suggests that people and the algorithms behind social media platforms are vulnerable to manipulation. (Ciampaglia &  Menczer, 2018).

Additionally, various tactics of algorithms, and those who profit from them, make it more likely that we will believe fake news (Ciampaglia &  Menczer, 2018). One of these tactics is prior exposure; studies have shown that even one exposure to a fake news story can influence social media users to believe a falsehood (Pennycook, Cannon, & Rand, 2018). While we are unlikely to believe implausible information, such as ‘the world is cube shaped’, information that suits us and confirms our beliefs is easy to accept without question; when that information has the potential to influence us and shape our identities and belief systems, it becomes a serious issue (Pennycook, Cannon, & Rand, 2018).

Here is the link to my blog post last week on homophily and how it affects our interactions on social media:

https://gaylebon.tumblr.com/post/190554246832/share-and-share-alike

Isolation and Its Effects

           Furthermore, algorithms are used to isolate us into biased groups using priming and framing. Priming is playing on emotional beliefs to influence our next choice; it is a way to grab our attention; the goal is to convince social media users that the information presented is important to them (Pennington, 2018).

Next, framing is the way that algorithms prepare us for an upcoming event like a political campaign; it uses exposure to information that is likely to be believed to influence our decisions (Pennington, 2018). This kind of influence can create an ‘us versus them’ mentality, or the idea that we are right and the ‘other’ is wrong (Pennington, 2018).

           Moreover, the results of this kind of algorithm can lead to political extremism and other evils; polarizing political content and misinformation result in a public who is sadly following lies without question (Lane, 2018). By playing to our strongly held passions and beliefs to create confirmation bias, algorithms are creating a kind of echo chamber (Bessi, Zollo, Del Vicario, Puliga, Scala, Caldarelli, et al. 2016).

To continue, according to a 2017 Reuters report, 48% of respondents use social media as a news source (Lane, 2018). It is a vicious circle; we hold a belief, it is confirmed by social media algorithms; we believe it even more; we make bad choices based on what we have been told and accepted without question; we go on feeling special and RIGHT; finally, we perpetuate the goals of those behind algorithms which results in isolation, polarization, and a public that is misled but feels good about it (Lane, 2018).

Also, algorithms are fueling political extremism and according to the authors of a recent and timely study on fake news by Oxford University’s Computational Propaganda Project this is being done purposely (Lane, 2018). Furthermore, Facebook pages tied to extreme hard right entities are responsible for more junk and fake news than anyone else according to a three-month study supported by the National Science Foundation (Lane, 2018). It makes one wonder at the constant focus on eradicating ‘fake news’ by right wing political figures; this author suspects it is meant to deflect and distract.

Constructive Steps to Better Social Media Use

           Finally, though we are susceptible to the tactics of algorithms and those who use them, we don’t have to be willing participants or victims of these schemes; there are things we can do to make sure we are not deceived or a part of the problem (West, 2017). In the image above one suggestion is offered toward making us more responsible social media users; don’t perpetuate misinformation, instead make it a dedicated practice to fact-check everything you share (it is not as hard as it seems, Google is very helpful and can give you a variety of points of view to inform your decisions). This requires some openness and understanding that even closely held beliefs need to be double checked (West, 2017).

           Some other ways to combat misinformation and fake news include look for sources for all information (Lane, 2018), be curious about who benefits from the information, look at other points of view for comparison, follow a diversity of news sources, and be skeptical (West, 2017).

Best Wishes, Gayle

  References

Bessi A., Zollo F., Del Vicario M., Puliga, M., Scala A, Caldarelli, G., et al. (2016) Users Polarization on Facebook and Youtube. PLoS ONE 11(8): e0159641. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0159641

Bonato, G. (2020). Capella University; U03d1 Blog post; Share and share alike. Retrieved from https://courserooma.capella.edu/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_233886_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_509417_1&forum_id=_1249868_1&message_id=_24672239_1

Ciampaglia, G. L. &  Menczer, F. (2018). Biases Make People Vulnerable to Misinformation Spread by Social Media. Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/biases-make-people-vulnerable-to-misinformation-spread-by-social-media/

Ciampaglia, G. L. &  Menczer, F. (2018). Misinformation and biases infect social media, both intentionally and accidentally. Retrieved from http://theconversation.com/misinformation-and-biases-infect-social-media-both-intentionally-and-accidentally-97148

Lane, C. (2018). Flaws in the algo: How social media fuel political extremism: New research documents how social media algorithms are driving polarization. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/side-effects/201802/flaws-in-the-algo-how-social-media-fuel-political-extremism

Pennington, J. (2018). The cognitive biases that feed the social media machine. Retrieved from https://www.connected-uk.com/the-cognitive-biases-that-feed-the-social-media-machine/

Pennycook, G., Cannon, T. D., & Rand, D. G. (2018). Prior exposure increases perceived accuracy of fake news. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 147(12), 1865-1880. doi:10.1037/xge0000465; 10.1037/xge0000465.supp (Supplemental)

West, D. M. (2017). How to combat fake news and disinformation. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/research/how-to-combat-fake-news-and-disinformation/

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Share and Share Alike

                            Getting Connected with Social Media

           The human need for belonging and connection with other humans is a powerful psychological need and a driving force; it motivates us in ways that being alone with our pursuits does not. Also, we don’t want to connect with just anyone; people choose to connect with others who are like themselves more often than with others who are different than themselves (Yavaş, & Yücel, 2014). This is called homophily, which is an internal preference to connect socially, in a non-negative way, with those who are like themselves (ICR, n.d.). In other words, we love what is like us; social media affords us a chance to ‘like’ or ‘love’ and we are more likely to do that for people and ideas that are like us.

           Furthermore, college students use social media and mobile smartphones in order to gain that sense of belonging (Kim, 2016). The need to belong and communicate with others motivates college students to use social media and smartphones and those with low self-esteem are especially likely to seek connection through digital means (Kim, 2016). Participation in collective events, social connections, and social support are some of the reasons for using social media (Kim, 2016).

           Moreover, connecting with others and a sense of belonging are positively associated with well-being, self-efficacy, and socialization (Kim, 2016). So, it seems clear that by connecting via social media and smartphones, we are potentially helping our mental and emotional health.

                                  Homophily and Social Media

           In marriages and friendships, social contacts, business associates, and organizational memberships we seek those which are alike; though they say that opposites attract, in reality people are drawn to those like themselves (Yavaş, & Yücel, 2014). In fact, we are more open to the influence of, we interact more intensely with, and our interactions are more effective with those who are alike than those who are different (Yavaş, & Yücel, 2014). This can be easily observed in social media settings; people really act like the saying “Birds of a feather, flock together” on Facebook and other SoMe (social media) platforms (Yavaş, & Yücel, 2014).

For example, in my personal experience I sometimes tailor my posts to certain friends on my list; sometimes I refrain from posting things I know that a majority of my SoMe friends will disagree with (though I may approve) to maintain social harmony and protect myself from negative and controversial discussions. I want their support and I prefer ‘likes’ to silence or arguing! The reason I use this method is that I want to relate to those of like mind in the area of spiritual, religious, and moral beliefs, but I rarely agree with the political views of my friends.

           What about those ‘likes’ and ‘loves’; another way to describe them is PDA’s (paralinguistic digital affordances) and they are indicators of social support (Donghee, Wohn, Carr, & Hayes, 2016). In one study the authors focused on “three psychological well-being factors—public self-consciousness, self-esteem, and loneliness” (Donghee, Wohn, Carr, & Hayes, 2016). One of their findings is that people who are more self-conscious are more likely to post, and more likely to perceive social support from PDA’s (Donghee, Wohn, Carr, & Hayes, 2016). Some people may perceive more social support from the volume of PDA’s received but individual differences and perceptions should be taken into consideration (Donghee, Wohn, Carr, & Hayes, 2016).

                                 Algorithms and Homophily

           Most of us have had the experience on Facebook of surprising appearances of ads addressing something from a recent conversation, internet perusal, real life shopping trip or restaurant visit; this is due to algorithms. Another example of algorithm activity is ‘friends you may know’ (FYMK) on Facebook (Tait, 2019). If you have scrolled through this list of FYMK, you may be surprised to see individuals with only the most tenuous of connections to your real life, or your SoMe life (Tait, 2019).

           While members of the public may believe that Facebook is using mysterious methods to find friends to suggest, Facebook only admits that they base FYMK on: people you have lots of mutual friends with, people in the same groups or photos with you, people who went to the same school or work at the same company, and phone and email contacts you have uploaded to Facebook (intentionally or not) (Tait, 2019). This is an illustration of how alikeness or homophily interacts with algorithms in the context of social media.

           In conclusion, social media platforms, like Facebook, provide opportunities for connection with those who are like us which can help us feel a sense of belonging and connectedness (Kim, 2016).  Furthermore, when others ‘like’ our posts we are receiving social support which can boost our self-esteem, self-efficacy, and well-being (Kim, 2016). We tend to seek out those who are like us for this kind of social support (Yavaş, & Yücel, 2014), and social media algorithms capitalize on this tendency creating a bi-directional effect: we ‘like’ those who are alike, and Facebook offers us more opportunities to connect with those who are alike (while also mining our data for marketing purposes) (Tait, 2019).

Best wishes! Gayle

                                                 References

Donghee, Y., Wohn, C., Carr, T. and Hayes, R. A.  (2016). How affective is a "like"?: The effect of paralinguistic digital affordances on perceived social support. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. http://doi.org.library.capella.edu/10.1089/cyber.2016.0162 Volume: 19 Issue 9: September 1, 2016

International Center for Research (n.d.). Homophily. Retrieved on January 29, 2020, from http://www.analytictech.com/mgt780/topics/homophily.htm

Kim, Y. (2016). Digital media use and social engagement: How social media and smartphone use influence social activities of college students. Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking (2152-2715), 19 (4), p. 264.

Tait, A. (2019). Why does Facebook recommend friends I've never even met? Retrieved from https://www.wired.co.uk/article/facebook-people-you-may-know-friend-suggestions

 Yavaş, M., & Yücel, G. (2014). Impact of Homophily on Diffusion Dynamics Over Social Networks. Social Science Computer Review, 32(3), 354–372. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439313512464

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Attention and Engagement in Social Media: Why its Important and How to Get it.

Capturing Attention in Social Media

(Phillips, n.d.)

In the world of social media advertisers, news sources, politicos, and others are competing for the attention of social media users; it is a noisy, overwhelming, competitive field. It is no wonder that so much money and energy go into trying to figure out what works to get our attention (Brady, Gantman, & Van Bavel, 2019). Influence, power and money make the world go around (like fuel), and social media is the newest engine. So, the first question is, how to get the attention of social media users.

Furthermore, the reasons why advertisers and others care about getting our attention is that it causes brand growth, it creates waves of positivity that are ever growing and contributing to brand growth, and it increases profits (Rose, 2017).

Attentional capture is a psychological process, a natural tendency of our perceptual systems; it can be used to spread content on social media sites (Brady, Gantman, & Van Bavel, 2019). Studies suggest that moral and emotional content is more likely to grab the attention of social media audiences than neutral content (Brady, Gantman, & Van Bavel, 2019). We are wired to pay attention to that which can contribute to attainment of our goals; moral and emotional content speak to this need (Brady, Gantman, & Van Bavel, 2019).

Getting Their Attention: Challenges

Getting followers is a big challenge, one which can be overcome; follow other accounts, share valuable and informative content, engage with your audience (see below the section on engagement), collaborate with partners in launching campaigns (Baht, 2018).

Another challenge is increasing audience engagement; this is ongoing, constant challenge. Knowing your audience, sharing great content, starting conversations, and maintaining your presence through likes and shares are some of the ways to overcome this challenge (Baht, 2018).

Three Tips to Get Attention on Social Media

1.     Use your business dashboard and analytics to see how your previous attempts at gaining attention are working so you can repeat those steps (Wald, 2020).

2.     Write more content that interests users; you can see in your analytics what this might be. Additionally, you can follow other successful pages and see what is getting attention (Wald, 2020).

3.     Be honest and controversial (a little controversial), it makes you memorable (Horn, 2019).

                        Maintaining Engagement in Social Media

If you have succeeded in gaining the attention of social media users, congratulations! However, this is only the first step; next you must be able to hold their attention so that they willingly engage with you and your content, interaction is the goal and comes in these forms: likes, follows, shares, comments, retweets, and click-throughs (Tran, 2019). These interactions are essential in measuring how effective your social media campaigns are and whether sales goals and other measurable goals are being met (Tran, 2019).

(Mulreany, n. d.)

Challenges to Engagement on Social Media

           Designing an effective social media strategy, one which increases attention and engagement is essential, this is your challenge. To overcome this challenge, make specific goals to make it easier, revolve your content around your audience, monitor competition, and track metrics for continuous improvement (Bhat, 2018).

           Another challenge is authentic connection with the audience; this strategy humanizes you and builds real, authentic relationship (Peters, 2020). To overcome this challenge, respond to all comments and questions in authentic, personal ways (Peters, 2020).

           Finally, coming up with consistently good content is a challenge; being creative and original all the time is difficult but must be done in order to maintain engagement (Peters, 2020). Make sure and follow successful marketers to get ideas for fresh content; be real, open, and transparent; and use original graphics.

Ideas to Engage Social Media Users

·       Rather than using social media as a soapbox (blasting our agenda, content, or message) it is suggested that inviting users in for a conversation is a more effective means of engaging the user (Tran, 2019).

·       Create a conversation with your potential customers. Notice the visual above in which a LulaRoe supplier uses a fun poll about what kinds of Margarita’s users like. I chose this because it caught my attention and made me want to engage (Rose, 2017).

·       Share expert advice, knowledge and opinions; in this way you are using the influence of others to get and hold the attention and engagement of users (Phillips, n.d.).

·       Educate; sharing information that can help your audience, reducing their pain point creates a desire to engage (Phillips, n.d.).

·       Entertain your audience; this shows your human side and causes your audience to like you and want to engage with you (Phillips, n.d.).

This is my take on the subject but I encourage you to do research online for more ideas; there are a lot of knowledgeable ideas out there and lots of help in the form of advice and products to make your social media posts exciting and profitable.

(all images are one time use and no copywrite infringement is intended)

References

Baht, U. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.cloohawk.com/blog/overcome-7-top-social-media-marketing-challenges

Brady, W. J., Gantman, A. P., Van Bavel, J. J. (2019). Attentional capture helps explain why moral and emotional content go viral. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000673

Horn, B. (2019). 7 ways to get attention on social media. Retrieved from https://marketinginsiders.com/get-attention-on-social-media/

Mulreany, R. (n. d.). How would you like your margarita? [Pinterest post] Retrieved on January 23, 2020, from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/76772368631303089/?lp=true

Peters, B. (2020). Solving the 10 Most Common Social Media Marketing Challenges. Retrieved from https://buffer.com/resources/solving-the-10-most-common-social-media-marketing-challenges

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Critical Thinking in Social Media News

What we believe shapes the way we live, think, act, feel, emote, share, relate and exist! When it comes to media that we consume, the facts are important and when we don’t have the ability (or perhaps do not realize the need) to filter fact from fiction we become victims and participants with propagandists and liars. We have a responsibility to ourselves to consume news with understanding, knowledge, and wisdom if we seek to be credible individuals. Also, our responsibility to others extends much farther than we think; a single shared story on a social media platform can reach thousands in a short time, thereby informing or misleading.

Differences Among Misinformation, Propaganda, and "Fake News" on Social Media.

Misinformation spreads faster than true information in some social media contexts. For instance, after the Toronto attack in 2019, Natasha Fatah published two accounts of the attacker, saying in one report that the attacker was “middle eastern and angry” and in another report that he was “white” (Meserole, 2018).. The fake version (middle eastern and angry) went viral, this is apparently due to confirmation bias, and the author of the article says that Twitter is like a confirmation bias machine (Meserole, 2018). Our closely held views drive our responses on social media, which then triggers the algorithms to promote tweets or posts with the higher number of responses (Meserole, 2018). In this case, and in most cases, following the crowd is no guarantee of being right.

Fake news is defined by Trend Micro Inc. as, “the promotion and propagation of news articles via social media. These articles are promoted in such a way that they appear to be spread by other users, as opposed to being paid-for advertising. The news stories distributed are designed to influence or manipulate users’ opinions on a certain topic towards certain objectives” (Trend Micro, Incorporated, 2017). So, not only are lies being promoted, they are being promoted in a sneaky and deceitful way. Their site says that three things create a triangle to promote fake news, here is the diagram:

Furthermore, the tools and services to promote various kinds of fake news are listed in this article, with prices attached, and include “Create a celebrity”, “Institute a Street Protest”, and “Discredit a Journalist” (Trend Micro, Incorporated, 2017). An example of a fake news story found on the Business Insider website is "Democrats Vote To Enhance Med Care for Illegals Now, Vote Down Vets Waiting 10 Years for Same Service" (Gilbert, 2019), this is one that I can see many of my friends falling for, it was fake news

Propaganda is used to spread the views of those who use it; whether this is done with a good or bad motive, it seeks to influence audiences toward a certain view. One article online lists seven different kinds of propaganda (Masud, 2019):

Bandwagon-relies on people’s desire to be like everyone else.

Card Stacking-relies on withholding some facts while promoting others.

Plain Folks-relies on using ordinary folks to promote products/services instead of celebrities.

Testimonial-relies on well-known celebrities or highly respected figures (such as doctors).

Glittering Generalities-relies on emotional appeal and/or vague statements.

Name Calling-relies on ridicule or bad-mouthing the competition (such as Burger King ad that ridicules MacDonalds-see below).

Transfer-relies on benefitting from negative or positive qualities of others (product, person, ideology) (Masud, 2019).

           One example of advertising propaganda used the transfer propaganda method; when major soft drink companies were under scrutiny for reported pesticide content in their drinks, juice companies and other drink companies benefitted as a healthy alternative (Masud, 2019).

           Another example, this time of political propaganda, is fake Russian social media accounts used to influence North American’s in the presidential election (PBS News Hour, 2017, October 31). 

Which Of These Three Categories Is Most Difficult To Detect And Why?

           Most of us are savvy enough to recognize certain kinds of advertisements that use propaganda (such as Burger King’s ridiculing McDonald’s ad).

However, it is a little more difficult to spot misinformation, which is basically just a lie dressed as the truth. Therefore, it is most beneficial to have a high amount of curiosity combined with a healthy dose of skepticism that will motivate you to look for more corroborating evidence.

Furthermore, propaganda can be difficult to spot, especially if we are not using critical thinking, asking lots of questions, and looking at sources and other views.

How Can Users Of Social Media Detect And Avoid Repeating Misinformation Or "Fake News"?

Standards of critical thinking are important steps or markers of intelligent consumption of social media, they are clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, significance, and fairness (Meegan, n.d.). By understanding and implementing these standards we are less likely to fall for fake news and more likely to spot genuine, factual content. Take breadth for example; breadth expresses all sides of the story, giving us enough information for at least a start in understanding motivation and facts that would be hidden if only one side was represented (Meegan, n.d.). I personally make it a habit to only post stories that are factual (as far as I can determine); I search for opposing views and if I inadvertently post fake news or misinformation, I post a retraction and remove the original post. In this way I feel that I am being as responsible as possible.

Additionally, check out any sources that are provided and look for opposing views, or even just different perspectives. You may still not be able to determine all the facts, but you will be better armed to resist fake news, propaganda, and misinformation. Revealing the source of propaganda goes a long way toward providing the information needed to determine the credibility of stories on mass media or social media (Farkas, 2018).

Credibility: a Critical Aspect of Social Media.

           Social media as a source of news, opinion, entertainment, and advertisement is a fact; most people use SoMe (social media) this way. Credibility still follows known name brands and news sources; this is important in knowing who we are allowing to shape our views. Everyone is on SoMe and this is something we must keep in mind; anyone, and everyone, can have a presence there and not everyone is credible. Furthermore, purposely choosing known, credible sources may eliminate the chances of falling for fake news (Storehaug, 2019). Though we may be more likely to receive factual information from credible sources, be aware that our personal views and biases determine which sources we believe are credible.

Distinguishing Credibility in Social Media Versus Mass Media.

           Revealing sources is key in discovering the credibility of information intended to influence the public politically or otherwise. It seems that social media is uniquely positioned and equipped to influence the public, whether for good or evil. Because of this ability, the public should always question every source about any important subject. While mass media is not immune from this issue, it is less far-reaching (Farkas, 2018).

Moreover, propaganda is not new, nor is it only used for lying and misinformation. Propaganda theory looks at propaganda as being “grey”, “black”, or “white”; white propaganda displays “clear and overt sources” (Farkas, 2018) while black and grey propaganda do not (Farkas, 2018). Farkas (2018) says this about understanding “black” or “white” forms of propaganda “we have to investigate their underlying technological and political conditions and causes: Why are they there? What purposes do they serve? And what are their modes of operation?” (Farkas, 2018).

Gayle

                                                 References

Farkas, J. (2018). Disguised propaganda on social media: Addressing democratic dangers and solutions. Brown Journal of World Affairs, 25(1), 1–16.

Masud, M. (2019). 7 Types & examples of propaganda techniques to blow your mind.

Retrieved from https://advergize.com/advertising/examples-of-propaganda/

Meegan, G. (n.d.). The intellectual standards [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://theelementsofthought.org/the-intellectual-standards/

Meserole, C. (2018). How misinformation spreads on social media—And what to do about it. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2018/05/09/how-misinformation-spreads-on-social-media-and-what-to-do-about-it/

PBS News Hour. (2017, October 31). Social media giants are vulnerable to foreign propaganda. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/MKfThgvFAG8

Storehaug, P. (2019). Social media marketing influence versus mass media. Retrieved from https://cloudnames.com/en/blog/social-media-marketing-influence/

Trend Micro, Incorporated (2017). The fake news machine; How propagandists abuse the internet and manipulate the public. Retrieved from https://documents.trendmicro.com/assets/white_papers/wp-fake-news-machine-how-propagandists-abuse-the-internet.pdf

Gilbert, B. (2019). The 10 most-viewed fake-news stories on Facebook in 2019 were just revealed in a new report. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/most-viewed-fake-news-stories-shared-on-facebook-2019-2019-11#8-tim-allen-quote-trumps-wall-costs-less-than-the-obamacare-website-3