How Algorithms Work — Why You See What You See

Have you ever watched one video about a random topic, and suddenly your entire feed is full of it for the next week? It’s not magic, and the app isn’t reading your mind. It’s just doing exactly what it was designed to do. The question is, who is in control of what you see — you, or the code?

Your social media feed isn't random. It’s controlled by an algorithm, which is a set of rules a computer follows to decide what to show you. The main goal of this algorithm is to keep you on the app for as long as possible.Why? Because the app is free to use, but it makes money by selling ads. The more time you spend scrolling, the more ads you see, and the more money the company makes. In a way, your attention is the product they sell.To keep your attention, algorithms have learned something important about humans: we pay more attention to things that cause strong emotions. According to researchers, content that causes anger or outrage often gets more engagement (likes, comments, shares) than positive content. So, the algorithm shows you more of it.A filter bubble is what happens when the...

Mateo (13) was scrolling through his feed when he saw a post about a new rule at a school in another city. The comments were a total war zone, with people arguing and calling each other names. He didn't comment, but he spent a few minutes reading the drama. The next day, his recommended feed was full of angry political arguments and people yelling at each other. He hadn't followed any of these accounts. He felt stressed out just opening the app. He started muting the accounts and intentionally searching for and liking videos about skateboarding and cooking, his actual hobbies. Slowly, his feed started to change back. He realized that just by paying attention to something for a minute, he had told the algorithm to give him more of it.