Social Media Is Turning Us Into Terrible People
Toxic echo chambers prevent us from practicing empathy.
We love to criticize other people for their flaws and problems. We’ll point out everything that’s wrong with society and demonize people who have different political views.
But here’s the thing: every single person on the planet has flaws. Nobody is perfect. So if you criticize other people for their imperfections, you’re just a massive hypocrite. Jessica Wildfire said it best:
“Moral outrage gives you a buzz. It feels really good to express anger and judgment at someone. Casting blame gets you high. Expressing moral outrage also gives groups an opportunity to reinforce values. It’s a chance to remind everyone of the differences between good and evil.”
Social media is turning us into terrible people. Most of us are stuck in echo chambers that prevent us from seeing situations from another perspective. So whenever someone comes along with a different opinion, we often lack empathy and immediately assume they’re wrong. After all, we rarely expose ourselves to facts and data which might contradict our worldview.
