– “We observe a number of negative new phenomena related to the Internet, such as disinformation, lack of a fair public debate, polarisation of views, information bubbles, or almost an open door to a completely new threat, which is deepfakes, etc. Are we dealing with this?” – asked Bogusław Chrabota, editor-in-chief of “Rzeczpospolita” daily, while opening the discussion, “Social and information mission of the media and citizens in the trap of content recommendation algorithms. How do we get out of it?”
Objective – commitment
According to Katarzyna Szymielewicz, co-founder and president of the Panoptykon Foundation, we are not really dealing with these challenges, and one of the reasons for the deep crisis on the web may be precisely the various types of algorithms created by big Internet platforms. Basically, they decide what content the users see in the first place. The problem is not their use as such, but the goals to be achieved.
– “The logic behind the algorithms is that the main goal is to gain user engagement. In the current reality, an average person is usually engaged by what is sensational, exciting, negative, outrageous, or unbelievable”, said K. Szymielewicz. People often take the bait, click, read, and reach out for more recommended content, which means they engage, and the biggest online players commercialise this engagement.
Reliability of sources
Katarzyna Szymielewicz pointed out that we have become hostage to the logic of the algorithms and will remain so until it is changed. This is also a problem for traditional media and publishers providing professional content created by journalists. This content is either becoming less visible on the web or it is “levelling down” in terms of quality, which is necessitated by the digital giants’ domination.
At the same time, participants in the discussion stressed that algorithms should not be demonised. – “They are not necessarily for manipulation and the result of their work is not only negative. All in all, they make our lives easier and allow us to get to the content we are interested in much faster”, said Marzena Tabor, head of "Rzeczpospolita’s online editorial department.
