Global Media: Echo Chambers

This week's question was "Global Media: How does globalization shape media products and industry?" For my presentation, I chose to look at the media event known as the "echo chamber" and examine how it relates to globalization.

Globalization proceeds in stages related to technological advancement and one of the latest innovations to affect globalization is New Media, which has increased the ease with which people worldwide can communicate. People can now easily create their own networks, or join any that interest them. This opportunity for connection has created a new form of community, one that transcends borders, one in which people communicate with others who share similar interests, values, or beliefs, regardless of location. This can be referred to as "digital citizenship" and is responsible for creating the online echo chamber. Because of the expansion of networks, it is understandable why people are drawn into echo chambers, seeking affirmation. A study of 376 million Facebook users by PNAS revealed that the more active a social media community is, the more likely they are to be self-segregated as well. Some echo chambers result from the technology being used to communicate. These "filter bubbles" are created through algorithms, that platforms like Facebook use, to collect user data in order to promote media that the user is more likely to respond to. 

The in-class discussion demonstrated that experience with echo chambers is widespread, especially in real-world environments outside of media, and that feelings towards echo chambers are dominantly negative.

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