Recently, the use of social media has proliferated every aspect of our lives. While social media can be a great tool, with which much good can be accomplished, we must still be cognizant of its downsides. Specifically, social media carries with it the potential for radicalization. There are many reasons for this, one of the main ones being the way in which the algorithms work.
The algorithms, due to a need to keep the user scrolling, detect the types of content that is already being viewed by said user. The algorithm then shows the user content which is similar to that which they already view. This leads to a phenomena known as “information silos” in which people only view content, especially political content, which reinforces their previously held beliefs. The algorithms also tend to reward shocking, speculative, or doomsday oriented content.
Many radical groups are aware of this, and use social media to recruit new members. They often target people who are searching for meaning, or those who are social outcasts, as these are the people who are the most prone to becoming radicalized. In 1972, there was a study performed which analyzed how mass communication relates to social change. Although social media did not yet exist at this time, the study did analyze the impact of the major media sources at that time, including radio, print, and tv.
The study I am looking at, performed by Robin Thompson, goes on to note that, at that time, most people could be fairly confident that the information they were getting was credible. She contrasts that with modern times, in which social media allows anyone with internet access to post what they can claim as “news” or “information”. The first example she points to is email, which was, in a way, the original form of social media. In addition to being used for business purposes, it was also used to send “chain emails”. Thompson states that, by 2008, “96 percent of young muslim men in the middle east were recruited and radicalized via physical connections”. It is also stated that at this time, less than half of the population in the region had internet access. In western countries, however, it was more common for people to become radicalized online, as more of the population has internet access.
Radicalization has become more relevant in the age of social media, therefore it is essential that we learn to recognize and curb it at its roots.
Works Cited:
Thompson, Robin. “Radicalization and the Use of Social Media.” Journal of Strategic Security, vol. 4, no. 4, 2011, pp. 167–90, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26463917. Accessed 1 May 2022.