[The Editors' Verdict] The President Also Wanted Comfort

YouTubers end their broadcasts with the phrase, "Please subscribe, like, and set notifications." Even if that phrase had come up in the president's address on the 12th, it would not have felt very awkward. President Yoon Suk-yeol did not directly mention the election fraud theory in his address that day, but he said that the National Election Commission’s computer system was ‘shoddy.’ He also stated that he instructed the Minister of National Defense to inspect the election commission’s computer system. It was the moment when the rumor that President Yoon was obsessed with the ‘election manipulation theory’ claimed by far-right YouTubers was revealed to be true. The National Election Commission responded by saying it was a "self-denial of the system that elected him."

Earlier this year, the Korean Society for Social and Personality Psychology identified the ‘psychological phenomenon that Korean society should be most wary of in 2024.’ It was ‘confirmation bias.’ This refers to the tendency to accept only evidence that supports one’s own thoughts and ignore opposing information. It means seeing only what one wants to see and hearing only what one wants to hear. Algorithms are often cited as the cause. Content platforms such as social networking services (SNS) and YouTube analyze individual users’ likes, viewing, and search histories to prioritize information that users are likely to prefer. Then, would simply blaming the algorithm solve the problem? Would it be enough to disclose the principles of the algorithm and provide information from diverse sources?

On December 20, 2021, Yoon Seok-yeol, then the People Power Party presidential candidate, looks ahead through a telescope at the forward observation post (OP) of the Baekgol Unit, 3rd Army Division, Cheorwon County, Gangwon Province. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

According to the media consumer survey report published annually by the Korea Press Foundation, as of 2023, Korean adults already consume news from various platforms. Looking at news usage rates by medium, TV was 76%, and portals were 69.6%. Online video platforms like YouTube accounted for 25.1%, and SNS for 11.9%. Koreans consumed news from an average of 5 to 7 sources.

Moreover, portals and YouTube should be considered already aware of the risk of deepening user bias caused by algorithms. The concept of the ‘Filter Bubble,’ which refers to the phenomenon of being exposed only to filtered information, emerged in 2011. Internet companies frequently adjust their algorithms. They sometimes deliberately expose users to content that contradicts their usual habits.

The intensification of confirmation bias may not be due to algorithms but rather a self-defensive behavior of modern people exhausted by information overload. Nowadays, information pours in real-time, leaving no capacity to thoroughly verify all information. In such cases, the easiest criterion for judgment is whether it matches ‘my own thoughts.’ Instead of bothersome ‘objective verification,’ how well information aligns with existing beliefs acts as the standard for information acceptance. From this perspective, algorithms are merely tools to satisfy human desires. If algorithms did not exist, confirmation bias would probably have grown in other ways. Humans prefer comfortable lies over uncomfortable truths.

Confirmation bias may be an unavoidable human trait, but recognizing and striving to overcome it is also a uniquely human ability. Constantly being wary of the possibility of confirmation bias and making critical thinking a habit is the fundamental solution. What was the ‘vaccine’ proposed by the Korean Society for Social and Personality Psychology in January, which predicted this year’s psychological phenomenon? "Confirmation bias usually occurs unconsciously. Therefore, simply recognizing the possibility of bias is already half the battle won."