> Does anybody have a solution
Yes. Get rid of newsfeed algorithms that optimize recommendations for engagement.
It won't solve our current problem, but that's what cause it. They took pg's Fluff Principal and weaponized it.
Yes. Get rid of newsfeed algorithms that optimize recommendations for engagement.
It won't solve our current problem, but that's what cause it. They took pg's Fluff Principal and weaponized it.
A reasonable proposition, and it would indeed fix the problem of clickbait/outragebait content. Locally.
People who profit from clickbait/outragebait content would migrate to other platforms that do optimize for engagment, and the cycle begins anew. Thus it doesn't fix the problem globally.
A hybrid solution might be possible if all (or most) service providers agreed to certain baseline restrictions on algorithmic optimization for engagement. Probably unrealistic, because there would be all incentives to cheat any such agreement in subtle ways.
While I don't like various problems associated with it, I support the principle of freedom of speech.
This is more of a bottom-up approach which can take a few decades to show results. With that argument, I'd be inclined to look back on the last 20-60 years. What have we been teaching/instilling in our population when they were young? I look at the stuff that's happening as a symptom of a long history where we dropped the ball repeatedly.
Feels like it’s a ‘mind of humans’ issue.