One of the most interesting topics we explored this semester in our class is the weaponization of social media. The way that social media has begun to cross-over from online chats to real-life violence is shocking—the last thing I would expect from platforms so often touted as a tool for bringing people together is for them to tear us apart. In retrospect, with social media’s ability to create “us versus them” narratives, as evidenced by the rise of cyberbullying in recent years, and to influence and birth massive and unpredictable shifts in popular opinion through “trending topics” and “likes”, it was only a matter of time until such power was harnessed for a larger purpose. Just like the telegraph revolutionized war during World War II, so social media has changed the playing field once again, granting us instantaneous access to “news”, real or not, at lightning speed. We are now exposed to thousands of unvetted opinions and ideas on violence and peace, politics and society, with only the barest of ideas of how to tell the lies from the truth.
More people than ever before are unwitting participants and witnesses of conflict than ever in history and with this comes great responsibility. In the midst of an information war the likes of which we’ve never seen, how can we see through the carefully disguised bots forcing fake news topics to trend or fight the “troll factories” whose soul purpose it to spread mistrust and confusion? As nationalism begins once again to rear its ugly head, weaponizing social media to weaken through misinformation their enemies while mobilizing through propaganda their own people, we are receiving a first hand glance at the chaos that it can sew so invisibly and inexpensively. China in particular has taken censorship and population control to a new level thanks to their army of cyber-soldiers enforcing a “social credit” system in which the government punishes anyone it deems to be less than a perfect citizen; a dark look at a dystopia in the making. Despite all the promises made to us by social media, its gifts of freer communication, thinking, and speech, there is a dark side.
Perhaps the hardest aspect to the topic of social media weaponization is what impact it will have on me and what we, the little guys, can do about it. First, it is more important than ever to check and double check sources—before we assume something is true because it looks official we need to be sure before we “share” or “like” it. Understanding argumentative rhetoric and logical fallacies is also important so that we can recognize and analyze statements on their own merit; if it doesn’t make sense, then it is probably not true and bears a second look or even second opinion. Even having the knowledge of the way “trending” topics and analytical sites like google work is helpful—knowing that it is algorithms that control so much of the content I see online will allow me to reach outside my comfort zone for knowledge and news, exploring different sources than the ones I’ve come to rely on without really thinking. It takes work to think critically about the sites and platforms we’ve trusted for so long to have our best interests in minds, but while its much easier to hide our heads in the dirt, in the long run it will be well worth it to do our homework on such sources.
Eva's Blog 