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The 'only' there is doing a lot of work. I don't have a citation for this, but my feeling is that historically, the majority of the people posting hate on soci
by jddj 7y ago
The 'only' there is doing a lot of work.
I don't have a citation for this, but my feeling is that historically, the majority of the people posting hate on social media aired their fringe views in much smaller and more direct social settings (the family dinner table, the pub, their barber/hairdresser) where instead of the reinforcement and gratification of many random upvotes from people in a similar situation or a vitriolic internet argument, they received either a fairly awkward smile and nod, a face-to-face rebuttal, genuine confirmation or (more likely) a mixture of the three.
Or you call up talkback radio and blabber into the void, often being shut down by the host.
A quick thought experiment:
Imagine you're pissed off because you've become disenfranchised for whatever reason and you're looking for someone to blame and lash out towards.
You don't have access to the internet. How much more effort would you have to put in to locate a similarly sized group of like-minded people who vehemently confirm and reinforce your views than you would now? How much more effective would the social filter which you encounter on the way be, remembering that every step of the way would mean real, rapport-inducing, face to face discussions with people who may disagree?
- flukus 7y agoI think you've got the causation backwards, most people don't start off with extreme views, they start off far more moderate until they account their extremist group. Once they're in that group the become part of the self reinforcing bubble. > How much more effort would you have to put in to locate a similarly sized group of like-minded people who vehemently confirm and reinforce your views than you would now? That will be highly variable, but IME not too hard. The punk/metal scene used to have a lot of overlap with neo nazis so exposure was easy. I've twice been invited to migtow groups from people at my local drinking hole (a progressive club in a progressive inner city area), not to mention some other fringe but less violent groups. If your a social type of person that enjoys chatting with a wide range of people your often only one or two steps away.