I have written before in this space about my concerns with the internet and social media. It seems to me that instead of opening up the world to myriad possibilities, these new technologies have also created a new way for people to develop tunnel vision.

Our politics reflect this so that false information can now become “true,” and conspiracy theories, for some, have become the new “normal.” How has this happened?

A recent lecturer at Chautauqua, Dr. Noah Feldman, helped me understand what has been going on. In terms of impact on society, Feldman compared the development of social media with the invention of Gutenberg’s press around 1450 A.D. The invention of the printing press exploded the availability of learning to the masses, and accelerated immense developments in religion (the Protestant Reformation) and in science and the arts (the Renaissance.)

In terms of significance, Feldman believes that the development of social media (think Facebook, Twitter, etc.) has had the same impact in our own time.

The great success of social media has been its ability to connect tens, hundreds or even millions of people together through their smart phones and computers in ways never before imaginable–and the key to this has been the development of “algorithms,” a system of analyzing data so that people with common interests (or fears) become automatically connected. Sometimes this is called “going viral”.

Like most technologies, there is an upside and a downside. Think about the airplane–it has been a wonderful invention capable of transporting people across great oceans in just a few hours. The downside is that it can also be used to drop bombs or be flown into the side of tall buildings.

The upside of social media is that it can substantially advance human knowledge and interaction in order to address common human needs. The downside is that the same technology can be used to promote lies, conspiracies and even violence. Thus (and these are my words, not Feldman’s,) it can be used to accelerate mankind down the dark side of human existence.

After listening to Feldman’s lecture, it made me think about a couple of other analogies which might apply. One is the old investment “ponzi” scheme idea where one person follows another on a “get-rich-quick” scheme only to find out that it is a scam involving hundreds. Another image also comes to mind–the Pied Piper who plays a flute and is followed by a crowd to its death.

Unfortunately, this is one of the characteristics of human beings–we like being led and we like to have easy answers to our complex questions. With social media, people can be led down a dark path or “rabbit hole” which ends up at a dead-end where fear and hatred lead to disunion, division and despair.

As with the Gutenberg Press, there is no easy answer. Bad and untruthful things were and still are printed. Governments have sometimes engaged in censorship…a terrible solution. Yet, ways have been found to confront pornographic, hateful and violent speech that has threatened the body politic.

We are a nation which has been built around freedom of press and freedom of speech. How do we protect those rights without being consumed by the dark side of social media? That is the great question we are now confronted with.

Rolland Kidder is a Stow resident.