"The study was conducted in 2023, around six months after Elon Musk took over at the app. Participants, who were all X users already, were paid to stick to either the chronological X feed or the algorithm-powered For You feed for seven weeks. Based on this sample set, participants were measured on how they felt about key political issues before and after exposure. The results showed that those who were on the algorithmic feed leaned much further towards conservative viewpoints."
"As per the report: We found that the algorithm promotes conservative content and demotes posts by traditional media. Exposure to algorithmic content leads users to follow conservative political activist accounts, which they continue to follow even after switching off the algorithm. These results suggest that initial exposure to X's algorithm has persistent effects on users' current political attitudes and account-following behaviour, even in the absence of a detectable effect on partisanship."
Nearly 5,000 X users participated in a seven-week experiment in 2023 comparing exposure to a chronological timeline versus an algorithmic 'For You' feed. Participants were paid and measured on political attitudes before and after exposure. Users assigned to the algorithmic feed consumed more content, followed more conservative political activist accounts, and shifted toward conservative viewpoints. The algorithm promoted conservative content and demoted posts by traditional media. Many users continued following conservative accounts even after switching off the algorithm, indicating persistent effects on account-following behavior and current political attitudes without producing measurable changes in partisan identification.
Read at www.socialmediatoday.com
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