Scootering Magazine 396 - June 2019 Back Issue

Beware the ‘echo chamber’… take a broader view. I’m not one for
trying to dispense worldly advice of any kind. I don’t think I’m in a position to advise anyone really. However, sometimes people’s behaviour patterns can leave me in a state of despair.

For those who frequent social media pages to indulge in scooter-related banter and friendship, and observe some of the wild rants which take place on there, you might know what I’m talking about. An ‘echo chamber’ is an environment in which a person encounters only beliefs or opinions that coincide with their own, so that their existing views are reinforced and alternative ideas are not considered. So when Facebook, for example, sees that you follow the page ‘we only ride proper scooters’ and also ‘like’ a ranting comment on there… it shows you more of those pages, and more of those types of comment, to try and increase your interaction and engagement with like-minded people.

The problem there is that itcreates a false bubble in which a few people tell each other what they want to hear, and they start to believe that it is the view of everyone. It’s a dangerous and isolating prospect, which often excludes the silent majority. When you boil a lot of these pages down, there tend to be a VERY small number of VERY loud voices…