# Filter and Label Your Email

## Student Hub Emails

**Rule:**

**Folder:**

## COVID Test Emails

**Rule:**

**Folder:**

## Filter Bubbles

As humans, it is natural to avoid people and content that we disagree with. However, being trapped in an echo chamber of the same ideas can cause us to forget and even deny that other perspectives exist. Nowadays, sites and social media platforms can use our browsing history and other data to offer targeted content such as ads and news links. This is done to ensure that we like what we see online. However, these algorithms result in [filter bubbles](https://fs.blog/2017/07/filter-bubbles/) that distort how we view the world. Many people are also unaware that they live in a filter bubble, which amplifies its impact. When we continue to only see what we like and agree with, we can lose our ability to think critically when confronted with opposing information, even if we were in the wrong.

As someone who spends a lot of time on Twitter, I see the effects of filter bubbles on a daily basis. Most people only follow others that they agree with, and block those who don't. Therefore, it is incredibly difficult to have a nuanced discussion on Twitter, as you are more likely to get ratioed and canceled for having even a slightly controversial opinion. In addition, most people aren't interested in changing their opinion, they are simply looking to argue.

Recently, social media platforms have been [called out](https://twitter.com/ilyseh/status/1347320227038695424?s=20) for enabling the domestic terrorists at the capitol on January 6. Their algorithms enable right-wing extremists to find each other more easily: "according to Facebook's own research, 64% of the time a person joins an extremist Facebook group is because the platform recommended it." This allows them to organize amongst themselves and avoid detection by outsiders. This example shows the extremes of can happen due to filter bubbles.