With so many avenues for news and information, one might assume that people are exposed to many different viewpoints on important issues. Not true. A recent study discovered that Americans spent more time seeking out news that agreed with their current views. Researchers found that people spent 36% more time reading articles and news that reflected their own point of view. And, if they did read a dissenting article or opinion, people often countered it with others that then reconfirmed their beliefs.
While this isn’t exactly surprising, it is a disturbing trend. As media becomes more and more segmented, people can exert a lot of control over what messages they hear. And, it seems we’re tuning out the opposition. By doing this, some people increasingly believe that what they think is right and the other guy is just plain wrong.
What ever happened to keeping an eye on the enemy? Being informed about the issues means knowing both sides. The exchange of ideas and the spirit of debate is what America is all about. If we continue to shorten our attention spans for opposing views, you have to wonder if we’re throwing tolerance for other people out the window as well. And that would be a shame.
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The NY Times had a great map last year showing, county by county across the USA, how people have moved, over the last 20-30 years, to areas where there are people that agree with them politically. This has made more counties/voting districts homogeneous and predictably reliable to vote for one of the major parties.