Facebook Study Disputes Theory of Political Polarization Among Users

A new study conducted by Facebook came to the conclusion that all the other studies on this subject are wrong. All the people posting political crap on your Facebook page strongly disagree.

On average, about 23 percent of users’ friends are of an opposing political affiliation, according to the study. An average of almost 29 percent of the news stories displayed by Facebook’s News Feed also appear to present views that conflict with the user’s own ideology.

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Social polarization at its finest! Thanks FB!

It might not be that unreasonable ... I have many friends/contacts in my social networks based on different affiliations ... for Facebook I have relatives and friends from High School based on those relationships (they don't necessarily have political or social beliefs matching my own but because I have the other affiliation with them I wouldn't unfriend them over a political debate) ... for LinkedIn I have contacts based on a business relationship/employment history (so agreement with my political beliefs is not required to maintain the linkage) ... now if I joined a social organization built around a political or social belief then I might have a circle of friends that matches my thinking (but I am not a member of any such limited circle)

I think were forgetting that Facebook conducted this study...

I fall into that category. I'm middle-aged and a fiscal conservative/little l libertarian, but I'm "friends" with many of my younger co-workers past and present, who are from a different, more "indoctrinated" era that causes them to lean a whole helluva lot more to the left. They can't help it, I try not to hold the sins of their teachers against them.

That said, I'm not a close friend with anyone overtly "progressive", just because we have so little in common. Big difference.

The survey seems reasonable to me.

I click on stories that are substantially different than my point of view on social, fiscal and political subjects. I have friends on Facebook and in real life whose views and ideologies are quite a bit different than my own. It's OK - they're friends, which means that we have interests in common. They're not clones, though, so we don't have to agree on everything, right?

The vast majority of what i see is left of center which typically agrees with my POV...this makes sense, because FB no longer shows articles in the order they're posted (even if you select that option), so if you click on "Right Wing Nut Job" posts but not "Left Wing Nut Job" posts, you'll see more of the former posts.

If you like a post from Bill Nye, you'll see more from Bill Nye. It's a serious shortcoming with FB (though they'd disagree).

I'd be screwed. I am liberal in some areas, conservative in others, and insane in another. So, if they are using me as a subject, have fun.