A growing number of projects target the so-called filter bubbles on social media by exposing their users to opinions and news from the other side of their political beliefs. Various browser extensions and plug-ins expose the political biases of users’ Facebook feeds, for instance, or provide a glimpse into the social media feed of a person from a different political standing.

Although such efforts are commendable, it remains to be seen how many people are actually willing to step outside their digital comfort zone – especially those who feel vindicated by Trump’s victory, for instance. Many have pointed out that filter bubbles and echo chambers are not only a technical issue but rather a reflection of the fact that people “filter” information also offline based on their preexisting beliefs.

Given that Facebook seems to have acknowledged the issue of filter bubbles in the recent Zuckerberg manifesto, it will be interesting to see how the platform itself ends up addressing the issue.