We scroll through social media or browse the internet and see countless advertisements and news stories that appeal to our interests. It seems like everything that appears on the internet is aimed at pleasing our social and political interests. It is almost a little weird how there seems to be almost nothing on your Facebook page that contradicts your values or morals, almost like it is a coincidence. But this is no coincidence. Technology is rapidly evolving, and with the latest technology comes “Online Filter Bubbles”.

Online Filter Bubbles personalizes a user’s social media or internet searches based on past clicks, location, and search history. Is this necessarily a bad thing? No. Sometimes it is convenient to have all the websites you like just a click away. But is that the only thing online filter bubbles do? No. Online Filter Bubbles, especially on Facebook, can block out any posts Facebook might feel contradict your values and morals. This restricts your access to knowledge about what is going on in the world.

Even if we do not agree with what a friend is posting or sharing, or what story is trending on the internet that does not mean we can just block it out. We must be aware of everything that goes on in our world, we cannot choose to be oblivious to the issues and stores we do not agree with. We cannot allow ourselves to live in bubbles unaware about what is going on outside of that bubble.

Next time you find yourself scrolling through Facebook or browsing the Internet, ask yourself if you are really seeing “everything” and if living in a bubble is really how you desire to live your life.