Google’s “Filter Bubble” is an effect generated by the algorithms that define each user’s timeline on a social network. It can also refer to the content displayed when searching for any term in a search engine like Google.
Eli Pariser defined the filter bubble in his book “The Filter Bubble: What the Internet Is Hiding from You”
These algorithms use the information they have about users to return personalized results, which can generate an informational bias and reinforce their own pre-existing beliefs.
The term was coined by Eli Pariser in his book “The Filter Bubble: What the Internet Is Hiding from You.” He defines it as a community bubble in which one navigates the same environments as their contacts.
These contacts think like the user, sharing things that align with their own beliefs. The filter bubble can generate dangerous social and emotional states and can isolate users from other points of view.
In 2004, Google modified its algorithm so that searches performed by users on its platform became personalized. The goal was for them to be associated not only with the relevance of each page but also with the websites the user had previously visited and the user’s information in Google’s databases.
Since then, Google has used user data to generate personalized results, which can be useful for the user but can also create commercial, social, and political biases.
How to avoid the effects of Google’s “Filter Bubble”
In addition to Google, other search engines like Bing or Yahoo! also use users’ personal information. Data such as search history, location data, IP address, cookie identifiers, date, time, web pages they click on first, personal data such as age and gender, among others.
But the effects of this filter bubble are not inevitable. To avoid them, it is recommended to log out of Google and delete your search history.
However, it should be noted that Google’s personalized search applies to any user who accesses the search engine, even without having their Google account open, since 2009.
Therefore, the best way to avoid the filter bubble is to be aware of its existence and adopt a critical stance toward the results obtained in search engines and social networks, as well as always seeking diverse sources of information.
