Internet algorithms holding you hostage: how to escape the Matrix

Do you ever feel like you are locked in a personalization prison? Do Netflix, Amazon, and Spotify keep serving you more of the same, leaving you feeling trapped in the safe walled gardens of big tech? This can leave you feeling empty, yearning for something different, and the moments of serendipity where you fall in love with something you usually wouldn't like.

Welcome to the world of filter bubbles. Everything from news portals to online shopping and social media to streaming platforms is run by personalization algorithms that strengthen your worldview rather than challenge it, ensuring you are constantly surrounded by like-minded opinions.

What are filter bubbles?

A filter bubble is often mentioned in the same sentence as an echo chamber. But there are a few subtle differences. Filter bubbles result from our digital footprint, which comprises our browsing history, likes, comments, shares, clicks, and swipes. All of these factors determine what we see online.

Echo chambers are caused by users consciously removing people or different opinions from their newsfeeds. But every alternative opinion we remove adds more borders to our reality.

"Your filter bubble is a unique personal universe of information created just for you by an array of personalizing filters." - Eli Pariser.

Over time, it's easy to unwittingly surround ourselves with people with the same mindset and close our minds to new perspectives. With these beliefs continuously strengthened through confirmation bias, accepting different schools of thought or alternative viewpoints can be challenging.

How personalization algorithms create NPCs of us all

Personalization algorithms hold back personal growth and promote a 'know it all' attitude. It predictably never ends well when someone inevitably challenges these beliefs in the real world. Maybe this is why some people you meet in public appear to have such short fuses when faced with anything outside their ideological framework.

A world constructed from the familiar is a world in which there's nothing to learn since there is invisible autopropaganda which is indoctrinating us with our own ideas. — Eli Pariser

Allowing personalization algorithms to shape our reality and replace our critical thinking skills will initially give off main character energy. Ironically, in the long term, we are more likely to risk becoming a non-playing character (NPC). So, how do we stop binary thinking from ruining our lives and collectively reignite our curiosity to escape our online prison en masse?

Diversify your information sources

One of the first victims of our digital age is nuance and context. Whether you have strong political leanings on the left or right, it's time to mix up your sources and stop subscribing to media outlets that make their money by telling 50% of the population what they want to hear.

Follow outlets you might disagree with to compare and contrast different reporting on news stories. AllSides and Ground News are great platforms that present news stories from left, center, and right-leaning sources.

Take time to learn how both sides will take comments out of context and push a narrative for their audience regardless of the facts. Before you get into arguments online, remember that research has proven that most internet traffic comes from bots.

Most importantly, remember the old proverb: believe none of what you see and only half of what you hear. It's easy to believe things written on our newsfeed but take the time to verify stories before commenting or sharing on a clickbait article designed to get you outraged or make a rash decision like a phishing email.

Change your online behavior

With algorithms fueling dynamic pricing strategies in everything from hotel rates to airline tickets, you must change your online behavior. Use incognito or private browsing modes and regularly clear out your search history/cookies.

Many social media platforms also track their members across the web and sell your information to thousands of companies. For these reasons alone, logging out of social media accounts when browsing the web would be advisable.

You can further manipulate your digital footprint by occasionally clicking on content that doesn't align with your usual interests and consciously engaging with a broader range of topics and viewpoints online.

If your existing browser allows you to log in to track activity and personalize your results, consider a new privacy-focused browser. You should also experiment with alternative search engines prioritizing privacy and unbiased results. For example, StartPage provides Google search results but without tracking or personalization.

Improve algorithmic awareness and critical thinking skills

Television, newspapers, Google search results, social media platforms, and ChatGPT results all contain a sea of untruths and hallucinations that leave us all vulnerable to manipulation. Finding the truth requires the same critical thinking skills currently eroded by filter bubbles. However, this can be overcome by developing self-awareness about and actively challenging your biases.

Much has been said about the dreaded endless scroll and dopamine feedback loops designed to maximize engagement and keep users on their platforms longer. However, we now need to address the impacts of limited exposure to diverse perspectives, the potential reinforcement of existing biases, the increased polarization of viewpoints, and the reduced ability to critically evaluate information.

However, knowing their influence can empower you to make conscious decisions about online interactions and information consumption. Unfortunately, there is no secret fix to eliminating filter bubbles from your online activity. But with self-awareness, you can take active steps to broaden your horizons and reduce their impact on your worldview and decision-making processes. Or you could accept your fate in the personalization prison, even though the cell door is left open.