Wondering why you're so angry all the time? It's not a coincidence. Sarah Silverman explains how big companies profit off our rage and attention.None of this is news to me. I've been examining how social media profits from anger since at least 2018, when I posted Vox explains how social media contributes to polarization and promotes trolls, conspiracy theorists, and fake news. I've been blogging about how political actors have been exploiting social media for even longer, going back at least as far as Sith Jihad's use of social media a double-edged sword in June 2018, followed up by Putin's hackers and agents later that same month, and Vox explains how Russian trolls weaponized social media in June 2018 and that's just foreign actors. I don't feel up to chasing down all the of my posts about domestic political actors using social media to their advantage, so I'm just referring my readers to Brad Parscale calls the Trump digital campaign the 'Death Star' in a tweet. Fortunately, that campaign blew up just like its namesake.
As for cable news, I've known all along they cater to their audiences beginning in 2011, when I asked Who watches Cable News? (Teaser). That pandering may have finally raced to the top of a cliff, as Dominion is not only suing Sidney Powell, but also Fox News. There are new developments in that case, which I might cover. Stay tuned to see if Fox News ends up going over the cliff.
I can't help but note that all of her examples came from the right wing.
ReplyDeleteBoth sides are subject to being manipulated into polarization, but it's largely being driven by right-wing extremism. Leftists who want to disassociate from right-wingers are largely reacting to actual right-wing views (more guns; and fewer rights for women, minorities, and LGBTQ). But right-wingers are largely reacting to misrepresentations wing views (abortion as birth control up to the moment of birth; indoctrination of kids into LGBTQ lifestyles).
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DeleteI agree with both your points; people are subject to media manipulation on all sides of the political spectrum, left, right, and center, but the current episodes of it are mostly the result of reactionary propaganda, whether directly or as a response. Even Sarah Silverman's made-up example was about how what passes for the American Left responds to right-wing misinformation.