Why social media algorithms send you posts you don't like - UPI.com

New research suggests that social media algorithms supplying your feeds may be prioritizing content that clashes with your values. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/ UPI | License Photo

Do your social media accounts feed you content that reflects your core beliefs and guiding principles? Our new research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that the algorithms supplying your feeds may be prioritizing content that clashes with your values. That's because the algorithms heavily weigh online posts that you reply to, and social media users tend to more often comment on content they take issue with than content they agree with.

Notably, our study of the X social media platform shows that although the X feed algorithm promotes content to both Democratic and Republican users that contradicts their values, it does so more extensively for Democrats.

How content gets into your feed

Social media platforms use powerful algorithms that select posts to display in your feed from a vast pool of possible content.