1678 replies to this topic

[tedward]

I didn't enjoy the comment referring to social media being an echo chamber. 

 

Enjoy?!?! It is simply fact.

 

There is no reasonable doubt that "social media" creates and sustains echo chambers. The behemoth that is Facebook has highly sophisticated algorithms that ensure that very person sees more of what they already believe and less of anything that might challenge those beliefs. 

Even VV, despite the protestations of it's admins, is something of an echo chamber. There is a right-leaning bias that belittles and dismisses left-leaning viewpoints which discourages participation. I don;t honestly think the admins/owners are trying to make it that way, it simply is, because social media simply does not encourage civil debate and favours negativity.

 

[Mike K.]

So why does the mayor employ Facebook for so much of what she communicates, an account on which dissenting accounts are prohibited from commenting on, and on which comments are deleted?

 

Her management style of that Facebook account says more about how she uses and feels about social media than what social media actually is. The mayor saying the City has a public discourse crisis is perhaps an attempt to discount thousands of voices who are willing to publicly comment about her performance as mayor, under their own name and with a picture of themselves adjacent to their name.

[dasmo]

I didn't enjoy the comment referring to social media being an echo chamber. That is disrespectful and unbecoming of a civil servant to state that. I get a lot of good information and food for thought from social media. I get a lot of garbage (and food for thought) from main stream media. If there is an echo of repeated political positions on social media, perhaps someone (I'm not saying who) should pay closer attention to the constructive parts of the criticism, as they might just be valid. The African Spring uprising comes to mind. 

How is that disrespectful? It's common knowledge that the internet is going further and further into filter bubbles feeding us what will most likely activate our pleasure centres. In the case of social media you are fed what you like and what your profile and fingerprint predicts you might like. This is exactly why you are so pleased with what you are fed.... 

https://en.wikipedia...i/Filter_bubble

[Nparker]

How is that disrespectful? ...

It may not be disrespectful for the mayor to state that social media is an echo chamber, but it sure as h*** is hypocritical of her to do so.

[Mike K.]

How is that disrespectful? It's common knowledge that the internet is going further and further into filter bubbles feeding us what will most likely activate our pleasure centres.

 

So why is the mayor discounting the City of Victoria's very own public questionnaires? How is that not an admission that the sentiment of the public is only valid if it supports the agenda/direction of City Hall?

 

Only months ago we were promised to have a vote on the new Crystal Pool. That's been taken from us, no doubt because the City knows the response would be an overwhelming no.

[Bingo]

Nine more months of bafflegab.

[Nparker]

Nine more months of bafflegab.

Or - gawdforbid - 4 years and 9 months. 

[rmpeers]

It may not be disrespectful for the mayor to state that social media is an echo chamber, but it sure as h*** is hypocritical of her to do so.

But it really is just about marginalizing voices of dissent, isn't it?

Dismissing anyone who doesnt agree. They're just part of a social media echo chamber. Not enough people took the survey. Disagreeing means they're not civil. Angry keyboard warriors who dont have the guts to criticize me to my face.

[sdwright.vic]

Has anyone gone and read the echo chamber of her Facebook social media?

[sebberry]

Has anyone gone and read the echo chamber of her Facebook social media?

 

It's no so much a Mayor's facebook page as it is a community bulletin board for activists.

[Nparker]

It's no so much a Mayor's facebook page as it is a community bulletin board for activists.

But it's still the ultimate echo chamber that doesn't allow a syllable of dissent against the mayor.

[dasmo]

Exactly what she said though. Social media is an echo chamber. So why so angry that she said what your saying?

[Nparker]

Exactly what she said though. Social media is an echo chamber. So why so angry that she said what your saying?

Because she clearly doesn't have an issue with the echo chamber if it's echoing support for her.

[Mike K.]

In the Fortin era City Hall requested the entirety of VV’s bridge replacement discussion to include in council’s official package. Just a few years ago VV’s discussion on the subject was seen as a valuable record, regardless of the content.

Today the content is an echo chamber. It’s amazing how much of a difference there can be between one administration and another.

[Arnold]

Enjoy?!?! It is simply fact.

 

There is no reasonable doubt that "social media" creates and sustains echo chambers. The behemoth that is Facebook has highly sophisticated algorithms that ensure that very person sees more of what they already believe and less of anything that might challenge those beliefs. 

Even VV, despite the protestations of it's admins, is something of an echo chamber. There is a right-leaning bias that belittles and dismisses left-leaning viewpoints which discourages participation. I don;t honestly think the admins/owners are trying to make it that way, it simply is, because social media simply does not encourage civil debate and favours negativity.

 

 

I agree with you that there are are "highly sophisticated algorithms" at play on the internet. I don't agree that one's personal comments on a forum such as this one gets tangled up with those algorithms and has any affect on other forum member's opinions, or anyone else's opinion for that matter. I respect your opinion, but you are referring to a totally different topic not dissimilar to the misdirection Ms. Helps used when commenting about the criticism of her actions.

 

Look, she would have us believe that the source of the criticism against her comes from some sort of unintellegent barrel of monkeys pounding away on  keyboards somewhere without anything better to do. The echo chamber that she was referring to in her EXCUSE has nothing to do with how many mattresses Google is going to put in front of you once you have searched for one.

 

Her comment is an excuse of her actions delivered free of charge at my expense. She made me feel that it was my fault that I don't agree with some of her platforms. (not hers) A really good person would not make excuses. A really good person would not deflect blame onto the blamer. If they believe they are right then say so. I was  disappointed in the fact that she didn't own up to her own convictions, even if I did buy the mattress.  

[tedward]

I agree with you that there are are "highly sophisticated algorithms" at play on the internet. I don't agree that one's personal comments on a forum such as this one gets tangled up with those algorithms and has any affect on other forum member's opinions, or anyone else's opinion for that matter. I respect your opinion, but you are referring to a totally different topic not dissimilar to the misdirection Ms. Helps used when commenting about the criticism of her actions.

 

Nope, I am referring to the broad category "social media". While obviously algorithms don't apply to actual people posting on a forum such as this, the human tendency to seek out like minds is still at play. Algorithms do not create human nature, they simply take advantage of them, feed them. 

But we digress. Please return to the totally neutral and entirely unbiased analysis of the Mayor's tenure which, of course, has never strayed into ad hominem attack territory, that is this thread.

[Nparker]

Social Justice Warrior defined.

[Nostalgic Victoria]

I think the whole spin here is essentially that if you don't agree with her or dare to question what she does, you must be uncivil, negative and likely part of some nasty social media echo chamber.

Again, zero capacity to even try to comprehend anyone else's point of view, little compassion and apparently oblivious to the fact that she is supposed to represent an entire city.

 

 

I didn't enjoy the comment referring to social media being an echo chamber. That is disrespectful and unbecoming of a civil servant to state that. I get a lot of good information and food for thought from social media. I get a lot of garbage (and food for thought) from main stream media. If there is an echo of repeated political positions on social media, perhaps someone (I'm not saying who) should pay closer attention to the constructive parts of the criticism, as they might just be valid. The African Spring uprising comes to mind. 

 

 

If ever there was a social media echo chamber it's Lisa Helps Facebook page, where dissenting opinion is verboten.

 

And it's that dismissive attitude of hers toward any and all opposition and criticism of what she's done that's going to guarantee LDH does not get re-elected. Her removal of all comments critical of her, her controversial policies and the damage she's been doing to Victoria since she got elected tells any observer that she really is as thin-skinned as I've been saying she is and she responds poorly to criticism (just like any other SJW type). That said and on that basis, she's proven she really doesn't have what it takes to run a city.

 

My biggest fear is Ben Isitt for Mayor.

 

I'm not sure what the plan is here, but please, can we have a candidate declare soon?  Time to start fundraising, it's got to be hundreds of small donations now.

 

 

That literally gives me chills. 

 

It's like I said in a previous post...

 

 

And have Comrade Isitt turn Victoria into the Victoria Soviet Socialist Republic (with himself as Commissar)? No thanks.

Edited by Nostalgic Victoria, 03 January 2018 - 09:31 PM.

[Mike K.]

Yesterday on CFAX when asked for an example of how the mayor acknowledged she was wrong about something, she said the staff recommendation to build a tent city at Topaz Park was one that came to mind.

She said she heard loud and clear that the community didn’t want it, and directly through her changing her mind on the tent city she was able to secure $60 million in housing.

I was not aware that the tent city concept was spearheaded by staff. And what came of this $60 million? Is that how much it cost to secure 844 Johnson and maintain the Yates shelter? Or is that money that hasn’t been spent yet?

[VicHockeyFan]

I’m not so sure that $60M is a real thing though. Where do we track that?