Cultural Tribalism in Digital Communities

by Jason in Creativity and Innovation, Social Criticism, Social Media

Tags: Émile Durkheim, Eli Pariser, Facebook, Filter Bubble, Google, Online Communities, Social Dynamics, Social network, Thought Leadership, Twitter

30 Comments

Jan

2012

The echo chamber effect both fascinates and frustrates me.

It’s an observable phenomenon whereby information, ideas and beliefs are amplified (and subsequently reinforced) through a community. It helps define (and refine) the collective conscience, a term coined by the French sociologist Émile Durkheim to refer to the shared beliefs and moral attitudes which operate as a unifying force within any given society.

As a active consumer and producer of content, I’ve often noticed that the same attitudes and opinions are repeated again and again in the blogosphere. Communities of blog readers are created when shared experiences and beliefs align around the content that is being published and shared across various social graphs. Forums are created around common interests/attitudes about an intellectual pursuit, hobby or professional organization. Individual participants and players online tend to create, experience and navigate those online spaces (social networks, discussion forums and other social frameworks) that, in part, reinforce cultural biases and reflect their own worldview. In the extreme, the echo chamber effect can lead to homogenization of content and experiences as a sort of cultural tribalism. When opinions become entrenched and polarizing, we circle the wagons in our little camps and tell the same old stories that we always have. Scary thought, eh?

Over time, the echo chamber can sanitize discourse by simply drowning out opinions and viewpoints that are perceived to be contrary or disruptive to the community. Internet activist and writer Eli Pariser argues in his book The Filter Bubble that personalized searching algorithms in Google and Facebook leads to users getting less exposure to conflicting viewpoints, isolating them intellectually in their own informational bubble. In short, we are creating individualized universes of information. Think about your personal social graph on Facebook or Twitter for a moment:

Does the content shared bleed together after a while?
Do sources that you read tend to center around key repetitive themes?

Recognizing the echo chamber is critical to producing original and thought-provoking content. I’d much rather not publish a post than write one that only adds to the noise. There’s no lasting value in publishing only the safe and predictable. We owe it to ourselves as content creators to thoughtfully examine how we’re managing our perspectives. We need to seek out writers and thought leaders that don’t play it safe, the ones that make us uncomfortable through their columns, books and blogs. Else, we’ll soon cocoon ourselves in a well-padded chamber of echoes of our own voices.

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Tags: Émile Durkheim, Eli Pariser, Facebook, Filter Bubble, Google, Online Communities, Social Dynamics, Social network, Thought Leadership, Twitter

Written by jasonkonopinski

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Tyler Orchard 61 pts

Great post Jason. Our digital engagement experience tends to be based more on sharing and re-sharing than utilizing it as a learning forum. Something I've never come to understand is that digital platforms and social media have provided us with an incredible opportunity to engage others in discussion yet we don't exploit its immense advantages (i.e. developing ideas with some of the greatest minds in any industry). It is not only to about sharing information, there's a need to create an environment of civilized debate and dialogue that takes the content we initially agreed with and continues the organic evolution of the idea. It's almost as if we have ignored this innovative part of our digital community in favour of simple regurgitation, ReTweets and "Likes". I'm not suggesting we debate everything that is posted, but dialogue and discussion is the very essence of continual innovation and the advancement of our knowledge economy. I think there is an ongoing stigma around discussion or constructive criticism in this digital world. Maybe it's because it isn't anonymous or there is a yearning to agree in unison, but there is a steady dissemination of like-minded and homogenous content. It is almost to the point where there is a overwhelming imbalance between "thinkers" and "audiences". The "yes man/woman" culture needs to be vehemently avoided. We need not fear contention and differing perspectives because it only makes us better and what we do. As professionals we need to add to our knowledge through the creation of original and unique content.

But what do I know - I agree with your entire article.

Cultural Tribalism in Digital Communities

Written by jasonkonopinski

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