Media I Consumed on 3/21/2024
6:30 AM: I woke up and after drinking some coffee I used google to check the news. I have my first meeting for work at 8 AM. I mainly just browsed and read about Biden and Trump.
9:30 AM: I watched a video on weightlifting created by Renaissance Periodization. It was pretty informative about hypertrophy with a focus on legs.
11:00 AM: I played wordle and texted it to my group chat with my parents and brothers. I didn’t do well I went 5 for 6.
12:35 PM: During lunch I checked out IG and how stocks were doing. Stocks have been slightly down today but overall things are good. On IG I was watching content about Japan and visiting there. Japan.Explores is who I follow and watched a clip on how to travel around Japan using their train system.
5:30 PM: I was texting with my friends and went to the gym. While at the gym, I watched some posts on IG about weightlifting. I actually got into a discussion with someone I hadn’t met before about the Renaissance Periodization channel and how we both watch it. He started telling me about intermittent fasting and how it was better. Everything I’ve learned this isn’t necessarily true, that its just a tool. I googled about it afterwards and I found things about it on Healthline which I don’t think is a very credible site.
7:30 PM: Out of curiosity I watched a TEDx video on YouTube about intermittent fasting.
Found here: https://youtu.be/A6Dkt7zyImk?feature=shared
From previous experience TEDx is not as credible as Ted Talks but they use a similar name to try and get you to buy into it. I found the video to be full of a lot of buzzwords but nothing of major substance. From more credible sources like Dr. Layne Norton. He does a great job talking about scientific studies and why they are good, why they are bad, and what he takes away from them.
Example Video: https://youtu.be/2oBBxvvksL8?feature=shared
I have learned in the past that intermittent fasting is a tool that can be used for weight loss but is not any better than any other tool that helps you stay in a caloric deficit.
9:20 PM: I listened to audible while doing homework due the next day.
10:45 PM: I watched shorts on YouTube from people I follow like Mike Van Wyck, Dr. Layne Norton, and others. It’s now 1135 PM and its bedtime.
Reflections on 3/22/2024
Although I probably use my phone way to much, I don’t think I have saw more than average amount of questionable content. I typically stay away from most social media platforms and only follow people that seem credible. I usually will try and research about them and what they say if it’s something I’m not sure about it or think is interesting. Since health is a big concern of mine I will fact check many of the health sites that publish things regularly like Healthnet for they tend to jump on fads and trends and don’t always go into the science behind things. I quit platforms like Facebook and Twitter because its full of people talking about their opinions as if they’re facts and people being echo chambers to things they like to hear. I experience this sort of thing on Reddit a lot too, but I didn’t use it yesterday.
Evaluating Misinformation – 3/29/2024
Part 1:
So, over the week I checked out the web page RumorGaurd:
This site is really cool. I really enjoyed how they break down the different myths, misinformation, and disinformation based on recent trends of misinformation/disinformation on the internet from news articles to social media and even more. I thought the lay out was really convenient for computer browsing as well as on my phone. You get to view the information in tiles and then select the ones that are more interesting than you. They do an awesome job of telling you what kind of misinformation/disinformation it is but then give you why it is false and if there is anything true about it in quick snippets. You then also get a summary at the end of what they think is important to take away from the issue.
For example, recently there was a cargo ship that ran into a bridge near Baltimore. Apparently online there has been conspiracies that this was some sort of terrorist attack but there is no evidence to support this and the
Article referenced: Baltimore bridge collapse sparks wide range of unfounded conspiracy theories (rumorguard.org)
Overall, I think Rumorgaurd is an amazing tool, and I will start using it regularly. It’s really easy to digest and keeps you up to date on current issues. I also plan to share it with my friends and family. With my parents being older and using social media I am concerned they may be victims of misinformation/disinformation.
Part 2:
Recently I played this educational game that called Bad News. Its a fun game where you learn about strategies to spread disinformation and misinformation with the goal of growing as many followers as you can and becoming as credible as possible in the eyes of your followers while spreading disinformation. You can choose to be nefarious or to just do it for the views, but it was pretty interesting both ways. At first, I was hesitant to be the bad guy but as you delve into the rabbit hole your integrity becomes more and more compromised.
It is interesting because at first you have to build peoples trust and spread small deceits to gain trust but once you have the momentum, you’re able to spread more and more blatant lies without much pushback. It also talks about how people that spread disinformation will try to discredit those that fact checks you. It’s easy to see why people get lost or confused about things and then don’t know who to believe or will latch onto what they want to believe.
Overall, I thought this simulation game was pretty fun. It does a really good job of showing you the thought process behind how people spread disinformation while being interactive. I would recommend it to anyone that is interested in learning about how people spread disinformation that then leads to others spreading disinformation. Especially if they use platforms like “X” formally known as Twitter. I think the use of games to help educate people is an awesome idea overall, it held my attention and I felt like I actually learned about the how people are so good at spreading disinformation.
Thanks for reading!
Travis
Website or Claim Analysis – 3/31/2024
For this post I’ll be focusing on this article:
And Elon’s post:
I think the claims stating that the Biden administration is trying to create a Democratic majority in the country is a worth evaluating because high profile people are involved like Elon Musk, it will most likely be a claim used to attack the integrity of the election if Trump loses, immigration is a big concern to many Americans, and it is relevant to the claims that were made about the previous election being stolen.
The first big red flag when I first read Elon’s post about Biden trying to allow immigrants into the country to create a Democratic super majority in the country is just the absurdity and conspiracy theory quality of it:
My first critique of this idea is that he is assuming that all of these people that will migrate here will primarily vote Democratic where this is not necessarily true. This article states that although many would most likely be democratic its closer to a little over 50% not something obsurd like 90% or anything like that: Are unauthorized immigrants overwhelmingly Democrats? | Pew Research Center
Here is some more fact checks on this theory:
To educate a friend or family on what is going on here I would have them watch these video from the class:
Inoculation Science – Videos – Ad-hominem Attacks
Inoculation Science – Videos – Scapegoating
I would then ask them to review the articles that I posted earlier and then have them come up with some questions while thinking critically. Once they have some questions about the subject, I would ask them to do some research themselves but try to stick to news sources that are credible and ideally more neutral politically and that cite credible sources.
I find this sort of thing really concerning because if you do some digging yourself, you’ll find a lot of the numbers and things being thrown around are just not true: Breaking Down the Immigration Figures – FactCheck.org
But what is really scary is that when someone like Elon says something like this many people will just take it as truth. They are not going to be critical of it and will just go along with it. It’s like The Game I played last week, where once a source is trusted and many regard Elon as a genius because he is such a successful businessman that they will most likely just believe him. This will especially be true if they’re politically aligned with him and it fits their narrative.
Thanks for reading!
Travis
Assessing Current Platforms Attempts to Curb Misinformation – 04/12/2024
Meta Misinformation Policy
Link to the Policy:
https://transparency.fb.com/policies/community-standards/misinformation
Summary:
The policy states that there is no easy way to define what they do or do not allow which makes this a very delicate but difficult thing to moderate without potentially harming people’s freedom of speech. Their focus is on trying to moderate misinformation that may cause physical harm, damage the integrity of political processes, and disinformation. They go on to cite an example of COVID 19 and how they partnered with health organizations to help combat misinformation about the pandemic. They then go onto talk about how they try to create an environment that reduces the amount of disinformation but that they can’t necessarily control all of it so they focus on more concerning forms of misinformation or disinformation that could actually cause harm or damage.
The policy then goes on to talk about what content they have and will remove. For example, some of the things they do to apply this policy is removing fake accounts, they will remove vaccination misinformation, which is great, things that would hurt people during health emergencies is another, as well as things like miracle cures, and election and voter interference, and manipulated information. So for example when people were stating that the 2020 election was stolen and if they were applying this policy they would remove anything that would spread this sort of misinformation that was found to be false. They also would remove things that would stop people from going to vote like for example if someone posted something about a local place to vote in a primarily minority area was closed and they wouldn’t be able to vote there, that sort of thing would be removed.
I think overall this policy hits most of the main concerns with misinformation and disinformation. Things that would cause harm to others, cause instability in society, and things that are made with nefarious intention to spread disinformation are all addressed. My concern is not so much with the policy itself as much as something like this takes immense number of resources and money to try and control and implement and that is what I’m worried about. A lot of these companies within the last year or so had a lot of layoffs and depending on the size of the department that addresses this concerns this may be a losing a battle even with the help of AI or algorithms. I think relying on AI and other tools will help alleviate some of these issues and then they can check and verify but I’ve had friends that have been banned for no reason. Luckily, they were able to repeal it and get reinstated, but this can make people lose trust in the company as well so its kind of a double-edged sword. Ensuring they have enough people working to help enforce this policy is definitely the key to whether it is successful or not. I feel like their policy puts a lot of pressure on themselves to moderate everything.
TikTok Misinformation Policy
Link to the Policy:
https://www.tiktok.com/transparency/en-us/combating-misinformation
Summary:
This policy is somewhat similar to Meta’s but they also speak about their Global Fact-Checking Program that helps them fight misinformation and disinformation. I like that they state their policy in very simple terms and that they have multiple policies dependent on the type of misinformation such as medica, climate change, and election misinformation. They also talk about AI, conspiracies, and public safety concerns. So, they are extremely thorough compared to Meta that much more high level with one policy that covers everything. They talk about how they work with experts to help them prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation. They also take the time to define what disinformation is compared to misinformation, which is great because until I took this class, I didn’t know there was a difference.
Overall, I think this policy is much more robust than Meta’s policy. If they are actually delivering upon what they say they are then I think their responses to disinformation and misinformation will be much better. They don’t just talk about what they are doing to prevent it by moderation but how they are trying to encourage awareness of misinformation as well as trying to educate people about disinformation. If they can put things more in the hands of the community then they may not have to put as much effort in moderation. So, in essence they are stating they are trying to inoculate their people to misinformation which is great. Overall, on paper I am much more impressed with TikTok’s policy and their efforts to control misinformation. That being said, I have never used TikTok unlike Meta’s Facebook and Instagram; so, I am not sure if they actually do this as well in practice as they state. Where from personal experience I know Meta is not the best at this in reality.
Similar to what I said about Meta and their policy they need to ensure that they are enforcing their policy and because this is something that will take a lot of resources to do they need to ensure they have the proper workforce paired with AI and other tools to address it and actually implement it so that people will trust their platform and to minimize the damage of misinformation and disinformation.
Thanks for reading!
Travis
Becoming a IG Content Creator and How Algorithms Work – 04/24/2024
Hey Everyone,
I’m writing this post for anyone, and everyone is new to Instagram and hasn’t made any content before. If you’re someone that wants to be a content creator or influencer on Instagram, please read more.
When it comes to creating content on Instagram sometimes you may wonder why such dumb things go viral and why other great content does not. And to be honest fads just don’t always make sense but what really has a major impact on what content everyone sees on Instagram is the algorithm. So it is very important that we understand what an algorithm is. According to the Digital Marking Institute’s article How do Social Media Algorithms Work? a social media algorithm is a set of mathematical rules that tell a group of data how to function. Meaning it gives structure to how the platform works, assign rankings to search results, and advertisements to help maximize engagement. So pretty much to summarize the algorithms take data from what we do on the site and then tells the social media what and when to show information. From personal experience I really noticed this after I liked some content that was of people rescuing dogs. I love animals especially dogs and after I liked some videos and watched videos of people saving dogs my feed got fuller and fuller of really sad content that made me want to cry because people are so terrible to animals. I had to resist the urge to like content like this because otherwise it was the vast majority of what I found on Instagram. So to say the least, what we do on social media platforms even the little things like liking content or watching videos matters.
Here’s a meme I found on reddit that I edited slightly but it helps visualize what we are discussing:
According to Instagram they use not just one algorithm but multiple algorithms that use rankings based on how you interact with the platform. It will match its content and show you that content that is relative to what you search for, like, and do on the platform. This means without user input algorithms are essentially useless. So to find out how we effect the algorithms lets take a deeper look at Instagram and find out more here.
When it comes to Instagram’s search and its algorithms there are multiple ways we impact what we find and how people find our content. Here is a cool video that summarize how Instagrams Search algorithm works.
To summarize the video though here are the key ideas I took away from it:
When you search the algorithm analyzes:
- The text or words you use to search.
- Your activity on Instagram. (What you like, what you watch, etc.)
- The more popular something is the more likely it is to show up in your search.
How we influence how we show up when people search:
- Your handle or username – if you’re making content about exercising put something in your handle that is relative to that like: JohnLifts.Weights.
- Make sure you put keywords in your bio and locations that will make people find you when they search. Again, if you want people to view your exercise content you should probably mention the gyms you go to like Golds Gym and mention weight lifting or the activites you’re focusing on in your biography.
- Keywords and hashtags in captions when you post will help people find your content when you search.
Safety:
- Do not celebrate violence. They will remove this sort of content.
- Making things hard to find such as accounts that constantly spread information.
So not only is the algorithm impacted by what the viewers do but what we do as content creators can have a huge impact if people see what we share or not. Here is a diagram from arronward.com that give a visual of how the algorithm evaluates what you post so keep this in mind when creating content:
Also here is another visual from agorapulse.com that helps explain how the algorithms work and what will and won’t have an impact on if people view your content:
So, all of this is great, and it helps us find content we want or want others to find on Instagram but it also can have a very negative impact. What if someone wants to spread disinformation or run a campaign to cause disinformation on things like vaccines or election integrity? The same tricks to get views and for people to find you and content relative to the disinformation can create a echo chamber. Even if they flag some accounts and make it harder to find their content that doesn’t mean other accounts can’t achieve the same thing. According to this article by the New York Times a recent study found that a great lie can actually get more engagement on social media sites than a truth. Even if you went on and commented on something being false, you’re still interacting with it and causing discussions which will make the post more popular which will show up on more people’s feeds. People may not want to admit it but controversy is entertaining and if you’re bored and watching something on Instagram there’s a good chance you will look check something out that’s super popular even if its controversial or obviously false. The real lesson here is to not believe everything you see online and use your critical thinking skills. Also if you don’t like content on there or don’t agree with something unfortunately your instincts to argue or post about it may actually have the reverse effect you want thanks to the algorithms on Instagram or other social media platforms.
The bottom line is that the algorithm isn’t really a scary over complex thing but is a set of logic or rules that the platform follows, and you can use it to your advantage when creating content and trying to promote it so do yourself a favor and leverage it to your advantage. That being said, now that you understand a bit more about how to promote your content and how the algorithms work please remember that with great power comes great responsibility.
Thanks for reading!
Travis