I am a big fan of "Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing." The author immediately drew me in with his well-researched look into breaking through the polarization that we see online.
I ordered it first at an audio book, listened to it over 48 hours, and came back to buy it in hardcover to use as a reference.
For someone like me, who makes their living using social media as a channel and teaches others how to do the same, this book was a game changer. Also, in my role on the board of Civilination.org a nonprofit dedicated to ending online harassment, character assassination, misinformation and violence, this book helped me to see a more defined road map to get there.
As a human being, who wants to get along with others who do not think exactly as I do, this book held a blueprint to get there quicker. It is not hopeless, and it can be done. Chapters 8 and 9 lay out a plan to start to make meaningful change in how we can reduce polarization.
In addition to sharing research from others, the author also shares his own primary research from the Polarization Lab and his depth of knowledge about this topic makes this a different kind of book.
I think it will help a lot of people. So, you might be asking who should read this book? Here are a few that I think will get a lot out of it immediately.
• Family members. Anyone who has relative or friend that thinks differently from you and you can't read their Facebook feed anymore, but you still want to get along.
• Communicators, PR and Online Marketers. This is a must-read for those who use social media to promote their business or ideas (this should be required reading).
• Psychologists and Sociologists. This book provides a window into what motivates people online, and how radicalization happens.
• Social Justice Workers. Understanding how people became polarized can help to change our own behavior to be more effective in outreach.
• Politicians. For those who aren't just trying to score political points, but who want to bring back the art of compromise.
Chris Bail backs up all his ideas with research, including experiments run by his Polarization Lab. Many of the outcomes are counterintuitive. For instance, it turns out that just being exposed to the other side’s point of view might backfire. Also, he puts an unexpected twist on the idea of the echo chamber.
Social media isn't going away, even when we wish it would sometimes. It has become part of the fabric of our lives. But it turns out that we might be able to come back from the edge, and it might even make those conversations at the Thanksgiving table more civil next year.
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