How to Escape the Echo Chamber Before You Get Trapped for Good

Echo: a sound or series of sounds caused by the reflection of sound waves from a surface back to the listener; a close parallel or repetition of an idea, feeling, style, or event.

Didn’t you love the “echo tourism” of generations past?

That is looking for places where your voice — yelling out or singing — would continue on and on and on, repeating your call until it faded away into silence.

I for one loved finding them…mountains, caves, valleys, even man-made public spaces, and I loved even more the game of finding the right phrase or tune to make it more memorable.

That being said, today we talk about echo chambers and not about a game but about danger — the danger of getting caught up hearing your own phrasing, ideas, thoughts, biases rattle on and on and on, but sadly not fading into silence, rather getting embedded in our minds.

Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times journalist and CNN contributor, put it this way:

We may believe intellectually in the clash of opinions, but in practice we like to embed ourselves in the reassuring womb of an echo chamber.

We all know the peril of getting caught in the social media echo chamber. In a report called “Inside the Social Media Echo Chamber,” the Brookings Institute reported:

In the current climate of negativity, many social media users choose to avoid confrontation with those with whom they disagree, which begins with ignoring material they find offensive. Pew reports that 83 percent of users simply ignore content they find controversial. When that fails, 31 percent of users tailor their feeds to see less of that content, and 27 percent may block or unfriend the source.

And then of course there is the problem of conferences where we often find self-validation, and on examination, even the more controversial presentations tend to walk a fine line.

I imagine that is what inspired Ketchum, a renowned PR firm, to field a study with Fast Company this year, in anticipation of the advertising industry’s annual Lions International Festival of Creativity in Cannes.

As reported in PR Newswire:

According to new research, the echo chamber created when like-minded people self-segregate and embrace information and ideas that support their opinions and beliefs is not only solidifying polarized views in society, but also impeding creativity. Leading global communications firm Ketchum engaged Fast Company, the world’s leading progressive business media brand, to survey creative professionals about unconscious bias, insularity and sources of creative inspiration. More than half (54 percent) of those surveyed admit creative professionals work in echo chambers. Of those who think there is an echo chamber, most blame conversations with peers that confirm and align with their beliefs and assumptions (91 percent) and news that confirms and aligns with their beliefs and assumptions (91 percent) as leading causes.

Fielded in advance of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the Creative Echo Chamber survey uncovered an important gap — while 71 percent of respondents say diversity of thought is valued by their organizations, 85 percent believe organizations must do more to encourage a diversity of ideas.

Now, let’s be clear, the 85% in question who “believe organizations must do more to encourage a diversity of ideas” is us — you and me — all of us together. Frankly, there is no “them” impeding diversity of thought — only a very manageable, identifiable and personal us.

It means ending the use of Jargon, rooting out Digibabble and opening ourselves up to a return to basics…as Ron Howard said in an interview at Cannes, we are in the storytelling business and all the rest helps enhance our abilities.

Another pin in the bubble is creating alternate conference venues and formats. One of the best is from The Unconference Movement, where most of the sessions are curated and presented by the attendees themselves.

I have long played in this sandbox and find tremendous learning and satisfaction from participating.

Full disclosure, the company I work for, WPP, is the organizer of one of the most successful and sought after of these events called Stream. Now held in various places around the world, Stream brings together business, art, culture, technology, food and who knows what else in a nonstop two-day cocktail of interaction, discussion, debate and connection.

And, at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Stream strives to do the same, albeit in one afternoon with a more intimate and focused agenda.

The point of Stream is for ideas to flow…to give access to new ideas and people in an environment where nothing is off the table and where the people presenting or being interviewed can say what they’d like, not what they think wants to be heard.

It’s also important to create open space physically, as well as intellectually, and Stream at Cannes happens on an island that is a ten-minute boat ride from the mainland, where monks make wine and the sheer beauty of the setting, not to mention the wine, loosens tongues…

So what was discussed?

Why a particular COO was not CEO of his company and what that really means.

How a powerful social media tool is like combining and connecting the old yellow pages and white pages, a thought that got many thinking about new possibilities.

Why there might be way too many bots pushing messages to us and the downside for consumer engagement.

If Mark Zuckerberg is setting himself up to run for president of the United States and what might that mean.

The well-known “fact” that no one will read long form or pay for content online…NOT!!!

What does it mean to create a baseline for truth?

Why do people still read printed formats in certain categories and will they in the future?

Why a “cloud module” is a better sell then just “cloud.”

Can shopping be global?

What does belonging really mean?

Where the worst fake news is really coming from.

And on and on…and this was just one afternoon…

One more thing…what you can learn from a child of Soviet repression who transcended one of the most closed echo chambers in the world.

And I for one returned to the mainland with more to discuss, more to share and more value to add to every subsequent conversation I had and presentation I attended and that is the point.

Most of us believe, and passionately, I would say, that we want to be known as diverse thinkers; we want to participate in diverse discussion and debate; we want to drive and champion diverse thinking in our own organizations.

And to do that sometimes we just have to Stream…allow it all to flow…follow it down without knowing where it might end…but trusting in the dream…listen:

“Upon the brink of the wild stream He stood, and dreamt a mighty dream.”  Alexander Pushkin

And to make the dream real — or at least to try — you have to jump in…and damn the rocks…

Listen:

“In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins; not through strength, but through perseverance.” — H. Jackson Brown

Like all, I go to conferences to be with likeminded people…people who share my values… people who share my goals…people who share my dreams. And people who do great work…having just watched the final awards show and being inspired!!!!

But sometimes we all need to dip into the Stream…

What do you think?