SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
"Quoting Trump's tweets, or quoting the latest stupidest thing that any political candidate or anyone else says, is an effective way to exploit people's basest instincts," Twitter co-founder Evan Williams said. (Photo: Randy Stewart/Flickr/cc)
Social Media Helped Trump Win By 'Dumbing Down the World,' Twitter Founder Says
"There is a media ecosystem that is supported and thrives on attention, period. And that is what's making us dumber and not smarter, and Donald Trump is a symptom of that."
Sep 13, 2017
In an interview on BBC Radio 4's "Today" on Tuesday, Twitter co-founder Evan Williams argued that social media platforms--including the one he helped create--greatly contributed to Donald Trump's ascent to the White House by shortening attention spans and "dumbing the entire world down."
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it."
--Evan Williams, Twitter
Williams dissented from the common view that Trump's personal Twitter use was a major factor in his victory, arguing instead that it was the broader effect of social media on the "quality of the information we consume."
Sensational and inaccurate information can be disseminated more rapidly than ever before thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms, "reinforcing dangerous beliefs and isolating people and limiting people's open-mindedness and respect for truth."
"There is a media ecosystem that is supported and thrives on attention, period. And that is what's making us dumber and not smarter, and Donald Trump is a symptom of that," Williams said.
Media driven purely by advertising has a particularly distorting effect, Williams argued.
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it. Therefore quoting Trump's tweets, or quoting the latest stupidest thing that any political candidate or anyone else says, is an effective way to exploit people's basest instincts. And that is dumbing the entire world down."
Trump--who once christened himself "the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters"--appears to share Williams' assessment of social media's role in his victory in the presidential election.
"Twitter is a wonderful thing for me because I can get the word out," Trump said in an March interview with Fox News's Tucker Carlson.
"Without the tweets, I wouldn't be here," Trump concluded in a conversation with the Financial Times in April.
Trump has since used his Twitter profile for a wide variety of purposes--to launch a sexist attack against MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski, to smear anti-racist protestors, and to move the world closer to a nuclear catastrophe.
Williams, who stepped down as Twitter's CEO in 2010 and went on to found the online publishing platform Medium, apologized in May for any role his company played in helping former reality television star Trump become the leader of the world's most powerful country.
"If it's true that he wouldn't be president if it weren't for Twitter, then yeah, I'm sorry," Williams said.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
In an interview on BBC Radio 4's "Today" on Tuesday, Twitter co-founder Evan Williams argued that social media platforms--including the one he helped create--greatly contributed to Donald Trump's ascent to the White House by shortening attention spans and "dumbing the entire world down."
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it."
--Evan Williams, Twitter
Williams dissented from the common view that Trump's personal Twitter use was a major factor in his victory, arguing instead that it was the broader effect of social media on the "quality of the information we consume."
Sensational and inaccurate information can be disseminated more rapidly than ever before thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms, "reinforcing dangerous beliefs and isolating people and limiting people's open-mindedness and respect for truth."
"There is a media ecosystem that is supported and thrives on attention, period. And that is what's making us dumber and not smarter, and Donald Trump is a symptom of that," Williams said.
Media driven purely by advertising has a particularly distorting effect, Williams argued.
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it. Therefore quoting Trump's tweets, or quoting the latest stupidest thing that any political candidate or anyone else says, is an effective way to exploit people's basest instincts. And that is dumbing the entire world down."
Trump--who once christened himself "the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters"--appears to share Williams' assessment of social media's role in his victory in the presidential election.
"Twitter is a wonderful thing for me because I can get the word out," Trump said in an March interview with Fox News's Tucker Carlson.
"Without the tweets, I wouldn't be here," Trump concluded in a conversation with the Financial Times in April.
Trump has since used his Twitter profile for a wide variety of purposes--to launch a sexist attack against MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski, to smear anti-racist protestors, and to move the world closer to a nuclear catastrophe.
Williams, who stepped down as Twitter's CEO in 2010 and went on to found the online publishing platform Medium, apologized in May for any role his company played in helping former reality television star Trump become the leader of the world's most powerful country.
"If it's true that he wouldn't be president if it weren't for Twitter, then yeah, I'm sorry," Williams said.
In an interview on BBC Radio 4's "Today" on Tuesday, Twitter co-founder Evan Williams argued that social media platforms--including the one he helped create--greatly contributed to Donald Trump's ascent to the White House by shortening attention spans and "dumbing the entire world down."
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it."
--Evan Williams, Twitter
Williams dissented from the common view that Trump's personal Twitter use was a major factor in his victory, arguing instead that it was the broader effect of social media on the "quality of the information we consume."
Sensational and inaccurate information can be disseminated more rapidly than ever before thanks to Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms, "reinforcing dangerous beliefs and isolating people and limiting people's open-mindedness and respect for truth."
"There is a media ecosystem that is supported and thrives on attention, period. And that is what's making us dumber and not smarter, and Donald Trump is a symptom of that," Williams said.
Media driven purely by advertising has a particularly distorting effect, Williams argued.
"It is the ad-driven media that churns stuff out on a minute-by-minute basis and their only measure is whether or not someone clicks on it. Therefore quoting Trump's tweets, or quoting the latest stupidest thing that any political candidate or anyone else says, is an effective way to exploit people's basest instincts. And that is dumbing the entire world down."
Trump--who once christened himself "the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters"--appears to share Williams' assessment of social media's role in his victory in the presidential election.
"Twitter is a wonderful thing for me because I can get the word out," Trump said in an March interview with Fox News's Tucker Carlson.
"Without the tweets, I wouldn't be here," Trump concluded in a conversation with the Financial Times in April.
Trump has since used his Twitter profile for a wide variety of purposes--to launch a sexist attack against MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski, to smear anti-racist protestors, and to move the world closer to a nuclear catastrophe.
Williams, who stepped down as Twitter's CEO in 2010 and went on to found the online publishing platform Medium, apologized in May for any role his company played in helping former reality television star Trump become the leader of the world's most powerful country.
"If it's true that he wouldn't be president if it weren't for Twitter, then yeah, I'm sorry," Williams said.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy