The challenge with social media that we need to solve

Social media have become an indispensable part of modern life: around 4.6 billion people worldwide use?socialmedia.?In Germany, 86.5 percent of the population is active on social media, with the average user using more than five different social media accounts. In addition to?#whatsapp?and?#facebook, TikTok is now one of the most widely used social networks. It's convenient to be able to get information quickly via the Internet and always stay up-to-date. Isn't it?

If I start a search on social media, for example, to receive an answer to the question "Does?#corona?really exist?", the algorithms lead to the fact that even afterwards only content dealing with this question will be shown. Everything else is hidden. As a user I am latently placed in a certain information corner – which might lead to really becoming a Corona denier. Admittedly: This is an extreme example. However, it can be observed that with the boom of social media, the world has slid much more into extremism - on the left as well as on the right. Here is counteracting needed. If I, as a state, have knowledge about these algorithms from?#TikTok, for example, I can use them to influence opinions as I wish without it being significantly noticed. If I don't implement it too aggressively, in the long run I might be able to change the opinion in the entire population. Another aspect of TikTok (btw this also applies to other platforms like Facebook, Twitter and co.): A company, indirectly a state, can collect and analyze biometric data of millions of users. Via the assignment of videos to users, facial recognition and thus tracking of individuals are possible.

However, if we look back at today's world 50 years from now, we will most likely (have to) ask ourselves how we could have allowed all this to happen. After all, social media, once "celebrated" as an instrument of democracy during the Arab Spring, have in the meantime shown their true colors. My opinion? To be a little provocative here: Today's algorithms for controlling the content displayed to a user are perhaps one of the most anti-democratic developments we have seen so far, or at least contribute significantly to it.?I am well aware that the world is not black and white, but sometimes exaggeration helps to clarify a problem.

In order not to lose the value of social media, we have to adjust a few parameters. What can we do to make it better? It's quite simple: algorithms must provide balanced information, keywords: fairness & transparency. Only then can we get into a user-friendly and media competence-based mode.?

And last but not least: While caution is advised when dealing with social media, let's not forget that these social media help us to communicate with each other - worldwide - and thus to be able to exchange ideas with each other at any time. It's not all bad, it just depends on how we use technology.

What do you think about it??