In the modern era, people love to complain about echo chambers being responsible for the development of unacceptable opinions and the spread of unacceptable ideas. But the truth is, many of these echo chambers aren’t as insulated as they seem and others were created deliberately to control different audience segments.
What should we understand about echo chambers? And how can we use that understanding to improve our knowledge and awareness in modern society?
Echo Chambers and Curated Audiences
People in the media often talk about echo chambers as a relatively new phenomenon, but the reality is, curated audiences and carefully crafted groups have been around for centuries, if not millennia. The only difference now is that people can find it easier to connect with other people around the world; this fosters faster and more efficient communication, and also makes it more likely for aberrant or unique thinkers to find people who think like them.
In their mildest and most innocuous form, echo chambers can manifest in any discourse community or any defined and segmented audience. For example, most businesses are built on the foundation of a niche target audience; these businesses specifically target demographics who are most likely to buy from them, then communicate almost exclusively with these demographics.
Over time, they can build a community, craft the messaging, and encourage all their audience members to think a certain way – even if this only applies to one small area of life, such as deciding what chips to buy in the grocery store aisle.
The point is, echo chambers aren’t some rare or particularly dangerous thing; instead, you could use the term to apply to a wide variety of normal, widely accepted interactions and social dynamics.
Everyone Is in an Echo Chamber
Propaganda and misleading information bombards you across all channels and platforms – even in your entertainment. Because of this, everyone is in an echo chamber.
Critics of echo chambers, and the people who supposedly live in them, often treat this as a plague only among the uneducated or ignorant. But the reality is, almost everyone is living in an echo chamber of their own making. If you’ve taken any time to selectively filter out certain publications or media channels, or if you’ve removed certain people from your social circles, you’ve taken an active role in creating an echo chamber for yourself – even if it’s a relatively small one.
Again, this should lessen the stigma of the term.
Some Echo Chambers Are Valuable
We also need to understand that some echo chambers are valuable. If there are 100 echo chambers actively discussing specific beliefs and ideas within those groups, and 99 of them are propagating lies on behalf of the powers that be, the 1 echo chamber outside of this circle of influence is arguably the most valuable one, focusing on the truth.
However, the people within the vast majority of these echo chambers would readily cast out and dismiss anyone deviating from the norm, identifying their status as an ideological minority as an indication of wrongness or ignorance.
We need to understand that simply being in an echo chamber doesn’t mean you’re being fed misinformation.
Accusations of Echo Chambers and “Fake News” Are Often Weaponized
It’s also important to realize that people around the world are ready to weaponize the term “echo chamber,” as well as terms like “fake news,” to discredit and humiliate their political or cultural opponents. Accordingly, we should strive to never give up what we believe to be true, even when facing name-calling or these types of dismissive accusations from the other side.
How to Navigate an Echo Chamber-Filled World
So what practical takeaways can you use to navigate this world?
- Read a variety of sources. One of the best things you can do is read a wide variety of sources, including some sources you don’t believe or don’t typically agree with. It’s important to have all the available information in front of you so you can make a more informed decision.
- Don’t be too quick to dismiss new ideas. When you hear a new idea or a different perspective, don’t be too quick to dismiss it based on your initial assumptions. We all need to strive to be more open minded in an era with so much misinformation and so many mainstream-accepted lies.
- Understand that some people are “too deep.” Being deep into an echo chamber is akin to living in a cult. If you have friends or family members who are so deep in their own echo chambers that they’re not willing to listen to you or your ideas, don’t try to aggressively persuade them or make them listen; some people can’t be reached.
Echo chambers are everywhere. Echo chambers can be dangerous. But echo chambers aren’t as rare or uniquely threatening as mainstream media would have you believe. Curate your sources carefully and never stop looking for the truth.
