11: Echo Chamber

An echo chamber is defined as "an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative ideas are not considered." This idea relates to my last blog post because media consolidation can create an echo chamber. When one company owns a bunch of television stations, those stations can become an echo chamber that are all sharing the same news and opinions.

According to an article from the Guardian, the early days of the internet promised a space for new ideas to be exchanged freely and people to share their points of view.  It was an optimistic view that most held, but there were also some who saw the possibility that it was too good to be true.  A lot of revelations came in the year 2017 as far as cyberbullying, fake news, and misinformation.  While all of these are problematic topics, they become intensified by an echo chamber.  One bad story could be disproven by other more extensively researched articles.  The problem is that people tend to blindly believe things that align with their own views.  This leads to them only seeing their own perspective in the things they see online.  Whether what they read is true or not, they believe it because it seems correct.  By not seeing other options or perspectives, they do not give themselves the opportunity to figure out the truth.

It is very important to see different perspectives and stories that disagree with our own views.  It opens us up to more truth.  By seeking the truth instead of believing the first thing we see or that agrees with our beliefs, we get out of the echo chamber and actually learn the truth.  After you get out of your echo chamber, it becomes a habit to find true stories rather than immediately believing whatever you see.