What does smarter even mean here? It is a very broad term and very unscientific.

You don’t need to learn politics. You just need to research the money and follow their trail. The U.S. isn’t a democracy. It’s an outcome that is decided by the $$$

Genuinely, quitting mainstream news sources would make people smarter about politics.

i am 41 and miss livejournal and google reader. after giving up on facebook because it felt vapid, tried instagram which seemed even more vapid. Have since given up on social media. Apparently reading and writing thoughtful, longer form content is dead. I wonder if some people feel like I do - that the shorter the content, the less satisfying the content is- and it is anxiety-inducing to see 200-400 short things instead of 10-20 longer ones.

I’m Calling BS on the study.

It didn't make them any dumber, either. But it did make them HAPPIER, so I'd call that a net win for civilization.

Robby?

I deleted my Facebook, Linkedin, Instagram, and Twitter. Then I realized that it may be costly, but it was worth it for my mental health.

“During final stages of the election” is the key phrase

I largely quit all social media except KZfaq. Honestly, if being less politically "smart" (not even sure what that means) is the trade-off for having much better mental health, I'll take it! I know that my political attitude has grown continually toward ancap libertarianism (not quite fully there yet) as I've seen more and more political groups obsessed with minding everyone else's business. It's the worst with celebrities... Their beliefs are none of your business and they should keep them to themselves. Like, seriously, Taylor Swift doesn't have to be a libertarian for Robbie to be a swftie, amirite?! 🤣

Yeah but did they stop talking to ppl who still on these platforms ?

3:15 Who sponsored the research?

Can you please talk about Negative Bias that social media uses

3 of the top 4 are owned by the same company

Bri is in a bubble

I happen to remember a story about a legitimate news organization many years ago that put out stories about someone looking through a telescope on the moon. They described many many creatures and plants Life with great detail. People believed these stories which tells us that this is not a new phenomenon... Humans will human and believe the things that they think to be true regardless of where it comes from or who puts it out.

Go offline and stay ignorant, or go online and absorb lies. What are we supposed to do?

Robby woke up late today, and his glasses are slightly crooked.

I bet those people are 100% more happy lol

Excellent discussion about social media panic starting around timestamp 07:00 . Recall that for most of history, only the clergy, royalty, and the royal court were literate. The printing press ushered in the modern era of widespread literacy and with it, book banning and other endeavors to ensure gatekeeping by the powerful. This "debate" is fascinating, but hardly new.

Quit all that mess and spent the time thinking for myself. MUCH better than social media! Don't miss any of it.

I use FB to call/chat for free. I've never gone there for news.

2:44-Politic's is LOCAL!! Fb was originated to keep in touch w/ your College & High School Alumni

That's all the evidence I need!

well it certainly couldn't make people any dumber...

Unsubscribing to The Hill might make you better informed.

I agree with the study. I quit social media and it didn't make anyone else smarter about politics. Unfortunately being smart politically today just means good at getting your point across to an audience and not governance or improving the lives of Americans. It's funny to hear Bri talk about people not knowing true facts. I fact checked her on a few separate occasions spouting off some talking point that had no basis in fact that she stated on the show( 1. Something about Israel dropping more bombs on Gaza than the US in Afghanistan, while partly true it was only in reference to the US operations against ISIS and not the 20 years of the Afghan war. 2. That Israel had bombed a church on Christmas. The actual story was a nativity display construct near the church that was meant to look "bombed out". The headline of the story made it seem as though a church was bombed and Bri likely didn't read beyond the headline or do any critical thinking, as the church is located in the West Bank and not Gaza.)

I agree. Facebook has the biggest political impact because of the millions spend on advertising. However, it is a blatantly one-sided platform that supports left of center politics. The landscape has somewhat changed in the past 2 years with the purchase of Twitter and the political freedom that was available on tictok, but that is changing as well with the potential banning of TikTok. If people can only receive one side of the spectrum, that is the way they will vote and is also the main reason as to why companies and governments are spending billions towards the prevention of an even playing field. It's an all out interference campain

Better mental health though…

Quitting social media may not make you smarter but continuing it will definitely make you dumber.

Really, who would've thought?!? I actually think it makes people dumber or atleast certainly less imaginative

healthy user bias

This study is likely the most worthless activity anyone could have engaged in. People in the most general sense are ignorant about politics, whether or not they use social media.

that's sum bs study puleez!

We are in May of 2024, and you’re still calling “ X “ Twitter . Is that your attempt to discredit Elon ?

Trump2024

Fake news! Staying off social media is good for society.