Transcription
[Music] How do we choose community? Well, people typically start by building bonds with people with similar interests. This could be art, music, even history. And as our friendships grow and our bonds strengthen, a transformation happens. These small communities, these small groups, turn into large, vibrant communities.
When people first meet, they typically ask, "Where are you from? What do you do for a living?" This is a subtle way to try to figure out what community we belong to. For ages, people have been categorizing themselves and others as members of this community and that community, often to gain the social buy-in required to join these communities. The communities that we are in play a huge role in how we interact with the world and our development. So, what happens if we find ourselves a part of a community that we don't remember helping to create?
Let's talk about social media algorithms for a minute. The algorithm is often responsible for tossing you into contact with all kinds of different communities. Take my experience with TikTok. I sent my friend one cat video on TikTok, and within a couple of days, my entire "For You" page was filled with cat content. It's crazy how much the algorithm knows about us, and the more we use it, the more it learns from us. This, in essence, turns our phone into an invisible mirror, reflecting back interests that we didn't even know that we had.
So, let's talk about this. The algorithm is a large piece of why TikTok is successful. It's not necessarily a novel idea. Social media companies have been using algorithms to show us what we want for a long time. The difference with TikTok is how precise the recommendations are due to the short-form nature of content on the app. Take YouTube, for example. YouTube uses a very similar algorithm to TikTok but has a little bit more user input.
So, let's say we have Bob. Bob is a fan of the US handball team. He goes and he follows them on YouTube, and the app, and thus the algorithm, suggests similar interests, such as the women's handball team and the accounts of individual players and coaches. TikTok, on the other hand, takes us a step further. TikTok is not only based off of what you like and watch; it's also based off of what your friends like and watch as well. So, your community influences what you see on your phone.
Let's take a second and appreciate how far we've come technology-wise, because the technology that we have now would have blown our minds 20 to 30 years ago. I remember watching old episodes of Law & Order and seeing them use these big, bulky cell phones, the ones with the antenna, remember those? And when I was a kid, flip phones were all the rage, and shortly afterwards, the iPhone came out. And following the iPhone was Facebook and social media. Facebook was the first major social media company, and it became so big, it seemed like everyone either used it, or if you didn't use it, you definitely knew of its existence.
But as my peers and I entered high school, Facebook began to fall out of popularity. Other social media apps started up, each using an algorithm similar to YouTube with more user input. But they've slowly begun to transition now into algorithm-driven content, each with its own unique twist. But the underlying principle is the same: an algorithm guiding what we see. The algorithm powers the invisible mirror. And while my experience with cats was harmless, and let's say, you know, innocent, let's dig deeper.
In the past, if you wanted to join a community, you used to have to sit down at the family desktop or use a big, bulky laptop and actively search for a community to join. There was real effort, and there was real intention behind it. So, here's the thing: what happens if you don't know we're interacting or joining our community? What happens is that every time you pick up your phone, you're interacting with thousands of communities, some by choice, others not by choice.
If you all remember Bob, Bob is not just looking for information in the next handball team game. He's also looking for a way to raise his self-esteem, self-confidence, you know, personal development. And so he gets on his phone and he starts scrolling. And I thought the advice is helpful until he runs across the pages of some influencers who are unqualified and uncertified and untrained, and they're offering these miraculous plans to help fix all of life's woes, only for the small price of $99. Bob was going on, searching for a way to better himself, but what he found was snake oil salesmen profiting off of a cult of personality.
This scenario highlights the negative consequences of unwittingly joining a community. People searching for ways to better themselves may end up even more lost than before. Think about the thousands of people that this has happened to, is happening to, or will happen to. So, as a student and an educator in the age of social media, I invite you all to consider this: It is crucial that we be aware of the communities and the invisible mirrors that we face every time we open up our phones. We have to critically examine every piece of content we see, asking ourselves questions such as, "Why am I seeing this? Is this revealing something about me that I don't know already about myself? And if so, what? How can I take this and learn from it in a healthy manner?" Because if we're not careful, these fake online communities can tear you away from the real ones that care about you.
[Applause]