Facebook May Be Democracy’s Best Hope
From polarization to spam, the problems of social media are the problems of democracy.
From polarization to spam, the problems of social media are the problems of democracy.
What is it about racism that makes otherwise bright people function as though they were idiots, wreaking havoc on the world around them from a place of perceived innocence?
Breaking up the Russian/Republican project might end that particular campaign, but it won’t disarm this cheap, readily available weapon, just waiting to be used again.
Diversity is about more than the humane tolerance of others, it is an evolutionary imperative. We will master a world of looser, more diverse cultural ties, or fall behind those who do.
Cultures and individuals who leverage these big trends are likely to prosper while those who swim against this tide are swept into irrelevance. It pays to look past the headlines and plan for the future.
We embrace fake news because it is easy, because it confirms what we want to believe about the world. Fake news is folklore; comfortable, mentally soothing stories about things that did not happen. Fake news may be pleasant, but it is an inferior evolutionary adaptation. Institutions built on fake news will underperform fact-driven institutions until they are eventually swept away in failure.