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Social media algorithms amplify division by optimizing for engagement
  • Algorithms prioritize content that triggers strong reactions
  • Anger/fear generate more engagement than nuanced discussion
  • Creates filter bubbles where radicalization accelerates
  • Explains global rise in political polarization
Yuval Noah HarariPeople by WTF00:43:38

Supporting quotes

The AIs experimented on billions of human beings and discovered something, that if you want to increase engagement, to grab people's attention and make them stay longer on the platform, press the hate button in the human mind. Yuval Noah Harari
You see the same thing in Brazil. You see the same thing in Israel. You see the same thing all over the world. It can't be something specific to one country. It's the underlying technology. Yuval Noah Harari

From this concept

The Attention Economy's Dangers

Harari critiques how social media algorithms optimized for engagement have rewired human discourse by amplifying anger, fear, and division at the expense of truth and social cohesion.

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