Outrage Machine: How Tech Amplifies Discontent and Disrupts Democracy—and What We Can Do About It

Journalist Rose-Stockwell debuts with a masterful appraisal of how social media platforms feed on users’ anger. He explains that social media algorithms, which favor contentious posts and articles because they generate the most responses, tap into users’ evolutionary impulse to rally around those whose share one’s values (the “in-group”), thereby solidifying one’s allegiance to those ideals while increasing outrage toward dissenters. Rose-Stockwell improves upon previous treatments of this topic by placing online polarization in historical context, arguing that “most major technologies,” from paved roads to nuclear power, follow a trajectory in which they’re greeted with initial euphoria, give rise to anxiety over the dangers they engender, and then are regulated to temper their worst effects. For example, early American newspapers churned out rumors and gossip before the industry professionalized in the early 20th century, then cratered with the rise of the internet, which made it easier for misinformation previously filtered out by editors to proliferate. The historical perspective enlightens, and the author’s sensible suggestions—including recommendations to make algorithms more transparent and to rigorously verify that “all users are real humans”—chart a way out of the morass. The result is a superior take on how to tame social media. (July)