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I'm glad the article mentioned Twitter's engagement algorithm — I don't think enough attention is being paid to it. With a different algorithm Twitter could be
by bobbygoodlatte 8y ago
I'm glad the article mentioned Twitter's engagement algorithm — I don't think enough attention is being paid to it.
With a different algorithm Twitter could be a remarkably different experience. The current one has a strong bias toward engagement & velocity. It amplifies anger, outrage, and bad faith arguments over less "engaging" content.
If Twitter let off the engagement pedal a bit and re-factored the algorithm, our political climate might be less hostile overnight.
These companies have long claimed their algorithms are politically unbiased. That's not true. While I don't believe they lean left or right, they certainly have a strong bias towards extremism. Extremism keeps you engaged, which maximizes the time you spend in their apps.
Imagine if Twitter instead decided to bias their algorithm towards positivity
- amanaplanacanal 8y agoBut engagement is what makes them the money! The profit for them is in never seeing that this is a problem. There may be no way to fix this.