First Advisor
Erin Spottswood
Date of Award
Summer 2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Communication and University Honors
Department
Communication
Language
English
Subjects
Facebook (Electronic resource) -- Influence, Computer algorithms, Internet users -- Attitudes, Machine learning, Online manipulation, Mass media and public opinion
DOI
10.15760/honors.1245
Abstract
This extended literature review investigates how the architecture and features of the Facebook Newsfeed algorithm, EdgeRank, can inhibit and facilitate the expression of political opinions. This paper will investigate how Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann's theory on public opinion, Spiral of Silence, can be used to assess the Facebook news feed as a political opinion source that actively shapes users' perceptions of minority and majority opinion climates. The feedback loops created by the algorithm's criteria influences users' decisions to self-censor or express their political opinions with interpersonal connections and unfamiliar connections on the site.
Rights
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/32382
Recommended Citation
Morgan, Callie Jessica, "The Silencing Power of Algorithms: How the Facebook News Feed Algorithm Manipulates Users' Perceptions of Opinion Climates" (2018). University Honors Theses. Paper 661.
https://doi.org/10.15760/honors.1245