Algorithms Used in Search Engines and How They Suck

I was shocked to watch the TED talk by Eli Pariser on “filter bubbles.” I did not know that two people could search for the same term and receive completely different results. After watching this video, I will become more aware of how the information on the Internet is being filtered for me by digital gatekeeprs, algorithms that determine what I can and cannot see. Pariser (2011) calls them the “invisible algorithmic filters” that are in social media and on search engines. I appreciate that Pariser (2011) uses the TED forum to call directly upon those who are in control of these algorithms, asking them to take greater responsibility. The Internet is supposed to represent the ultimate freedom of information. Filter bubbles contradict that ideal. Coders and the senior managers of all technology companies do have a responsibility to give back the power of information to the people.
The only potentially positive thing about the filter bubble is that it might show me results that are relevant to my local area, or to interests I already have. Yet I might not want results that are localized. I might want to learn new things, be exposed to different concepts and ideas. The filter bubble clearly plays into the hands of marketers, who know how to reach their target audiences directly through the algorithms.
Unfortunately, the filter bubble affects the hits I receive performing regular Google and Google Scholar searches. This means that I might not have access to all the information I need, even if that information is not scholarly in nature. To pop the filter bubble, Ashford University offers the helpful guide, “How to Pop Your Filter Bubble!” One of the first things I will do is to keep my Facebook data private so that I cannot be tracked on multiple platforms. The second thing I will do will be to delete my cookies and web history, but only after I am done researching something. The reason being, if I need to retrieve a search history, I might want that data. Third, I will start using the “do not track” option in the future.
Popping the filter bubble in all areas of online behavior is important. The filter bubble impacts what we search for in every instance, restricting the hits we see to ones that Google things are relevant rather than what we want to see. Basically, the algorithm takes away our power.
This week, I was particularly struck by how persistent the filter bubble is across multiple platforms. While I knew that Facebook does have an algorithm preventing me from seeing the people I am interested in, I did not know that Google delivered different results to different people, depending on their search histories. Sure, I knew that my location mattered when retrieving search results. Yet when I realized that it was not just my geographic location but also my search history, I started to mistrust the results. As Pariser (2011) states in the TED talk, freedom of information is the cornerstone of democratic freedoms. Editors of major news media used to be the primary gatekeepers of information. Idealists believed the Internet would empower ordinary citizens to possess the power of information. Instead, the algorithms are the new curators of information online, as Pariser (2011) puts it. We need to work hard to pop the filter bubble, and in some cases, sacrifice the conveniences of the Internet. For example, if I want to retain my cookies for the convenience of having forms filled in, I cannot do that and pop my filter bubble. I would like to know how I can have the best of both worlds: keep my search history but also receive an unfiltered search results based on relevance and not on what an algorithm thinks I want to see. The tips for using stealth mode in a browser were also extremely helpful, and I will make more of an effort in the future to pop the filter bubble.




References

“How to Pop Your Filter Bubble!” Ashford University.
Pariser, E. (2011). Beware online “filter bubbles.” TED2011. https://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles#t-512676