By sheltering us from opposing perspectives, filter bubbles distort our understanding of the world and

hamper our ability to make balanced decision

Nowadays, there’s a lot of information on the Internet – some of it is good, some of it is bad, and some
of it not really relevant to you. Websites, online stores, and search engines monitor users’ activity with
the goal of providing content that best meets that user’s needs. To do this, they use algorithms that filter
out items that seem irrelevant to that user’s activity.
Anyone who uses the Internet has experienced filtering of Information. Due to the massive amounts of
material online it is necessary to refine what we see, and this inevitable filtering of information at first
glance isn’t a big problem.
The filter bubble is described as a private and personalized space that every person has. This space is
not shared with others and mostly consists of things and ideas we like and know well. It also contains
variants of those familiar and expected things, as presented to us by various Web entities.
However, being surrounded by content tailored to our personal tastes deprives us of significant
amounts of information that algorithms have classified as potentially unnecessary. This reinforces the
confirmation bias most of us unconsciously employ. This bias prompts us to instinctively search for
facts (real or imagined) confirming our previously-established views. It’s this bias that can lead us to,
for example, look for negative product reviews when we’ve already assumed that a product won’t work
for us.
When individuals are engrossed in their personal filter bubbles, negative results can occur. Filter
bubbles create an informational barrier around people that prevents them from seeing opposing
viewpoints giving the “impression that our narrow self- interest is all that exists.
A filter bubble has pros and cons. On the plus side, filter bubbles are great when you need to narrow
your choices down to a few options. The mechanisms creating filter bubbles enhance the process of
matching buyers to potential products and sellers. They establish an environment conducive to closing
deals.
The disadvantages of the filter bubble become clear when we want to foster creativity or consider
controversial and complex ideas. Within the filter bubble, there is no room for things that provoke our
anxiety and curiosity and thus encourage us to discover different points of view.
Filter bubbles create a deep divide between the people. In addition, these issues don’t just affect large
national arguments, or our interactions with others online, but they can affect our personal relationships
with others as well. One of the biggest issues of filter bubbles is they are invisible, and people don’t
realize that they are seeing something different than everyone else.
Filter bubbles are a solvable issue, but if no action is taken to bring awareness to filter bubbles and
people don’t do their part in breaking free of them the result could be highly problematic. What we can
do is expand our personal bubbles and make them more diverse.