Issue 60 - The Machine

Welcome to Issue 60 of Deep Life Reflections, where I share five things I’ve been enjoying and thinking about over the past week. I’m writing this week’s issue from the city of Budapest, Hungary, where I’m enjoying a few days catching up with a good friend.

In this week’s issue, we explore how social media has been used to rewire our minds and our world in Max Fisher’s book, The Chaos Machine. We also travel to a dystopian future America in Alex Garland’s divisive film, Civil War, and contemplate how media—both social and traditional—shapes our perceptions and actions.

Join me as we explore this week’s Friday Five.

1. What I’m Reading

The Chaos Machine: The Inside Story of How Social Media Rewired Our Minds and Our World. By Max Fisher.

“We’ve reached a point where things that are popular and emotionally resonant are much more likely to be seen by you than things that are true.”

In The Chaos Machine, Max Fisher, a New York Times investigative reporter, provides a definitive account of how social media has seeped into the fabric of our society, demonstrating that its reach and impact run far deeper than we think. He argues that the technology behind social media has such a powerful pull on our psychology and identity that it reshapes how we think, behave, and relate to each other, effectively changing society itself because there are billions of users today.

Fisher draws from a well of examples to show how social networks preyed on psychological frailties to create the algorithms that drive everyday users to extreme opinions and, increasingly, extreme actions. One such example is Myanmar, where Facebook—largely unregulated in the region—was manipulated to spread hate speech and misinformation against the Rohingya Muslim minority. This created a humanitarian crisis, resulting in thousands of Rohingya deaths and the displacement of hundreds of thousands.   

Clearly, Facebook didn’t intend such an appalling outcome, but as Fisher shows, companies like Facebook—and other social media giants like Twitter and YouTube—had an unrelenting focus on maximising engagement at all costs. He quotes Sean Parker, the co-founder of Napster and first president of Facebook: “How do we consume as much of your time and conscious energy as possible? We need to give you a little dopamine hit once in a while.” This led to the social-validation feedback loop, which remains just as powerful—if not more so—today. It’s why our phones resemble Vegas slot machines; a battery of apps with colourful notifications, whooshes, and vibrations designed to respond to every action with visual, auditory, and tactile feedback. It’s a Pavlovian effect, training our minds to conflate the thrill of winning with its mechanical clangs and buzzes.

The Chaos Machine was a Finalist for the Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism, recognising its critical and cultural importance. Fisher amplifies the voices of outsiders and Silicon Valley defectors who courageously raised the alarm. These stories, now brought into the public eye, inspire hope that we can manage the chaos and reclaim control.

2. What I’m Watching

Civil War. Directed by Alex Garland.

Civil War, much like its title, has been divisive among audiences. Released amid America’s current political divisiveness, the title raises immediate expectations and questions: Who is at war? How did it start? Which party does the fascist president belong to? English director Alex Garland, however, deliberately offers few answers.  

Set in a dystopian future America, Civil War follows four journalists on a journey across the country to reach Washington D.C. before rebel factions seize the White House. They want an interview with the president. The film is part road-trip, part apocalypse. It’s loud, ferocious, and violent. It’s also thoughtful, unexpected, and surprisingly nuanced. I agree with film critic Matt Zoeller Seitz’s interpretation that the film isn't merely a cautionary tale about the ramifications of a divided United States, but instead a reflection on journalistic ethics, challenging the audience to consider the responsibilities and dilemmas faced by reporters in tumultuous times.

Civil War presents a portrait of these four reporters. The lead journalist, Lee, excellently played by Kirsten Dunst, is a legendary female photojournalist modeled after her namesake Lee Miller. Her Reuters partner is a South American-born reporter named Joel. They join up with Sammy, an older African-American journalist who writes for “what’s left of the New York Times” and a young, almost junior version of Lee called Jessie, who wants to follow in her footsteps.     

We watch the journalists single-mindedly chase the story, often recklessly putting their lives in danger. Returning to Matt Zoeller Seitz’s critique, the film’s portrayal of the four reporters might alienate many American viewers. This reaction likely stems from recent criticisms of mainstream media, which has been accused of inadequately challenging the rise of American fascism by sticking too strictly to a “both sides” approach. When confronted, these journalists typically defend their actions by claiming their sole duty is to report the events as they unfold. Through this narrative, Garland seems to ask whether a journalist’s highest obligation is to simply document events or choose a side. He leaves this question open, inviting the audience to wrestle over the answer.

Garland himself comes from a family of journalists, with a grandfather who was a foreign correspondent and a father who worked as a political cartoonist. This rich journalistic heritage may well influence the thematic layers of Civil War, suggesting that the film’s title not only refers to the literal conflict within the U.S., but also to a metaphorical battle raging within the field of journalism itself.

As America approaches a major election later this year, the scrutiny on journalistic integrity will only intensify.

3. What I’m Contemplating

In this week’s contemplation, we explore how media, whether through the algorithms of social media or the narratives of traditional journalism, shapes our perceptions and actions. Max Fisher’s The Chaos Machine provides a fascinating insight into this phenomenon through a famous 1950s experiment by psychologist B. F. Skinner. Skinner observed that lab mice responded most favourably to random rewards: sometimes a small treat, other times a large one, or none at all, a concept known as intermittent variable reinforcement. Casinos leverage this unpredictability in payouts, making it difficult for players to stop gambling.

Fisher draws a direct parallel between this psychological manipulation and social media. Just as mice never know what reward pushing the lever will bring, social media users cannot predict which posts will receive likes or shares. This randomness keeps users returning, hoping the next post might ‘hit the jackpot’ in terms of engagement and validation.

Similarly, in Alex Garland’s film Civil War, the depiction of journalists documenting a dystopian America reflects another aspect of media’s grip on society. Here, the reporters’ relentless pursuit of the next big story, often at great personal risk, mirrors the addictive pull of social media. The journalists are driven by the intermittent rewards of breaking news, paralleling the variable reinforcements experienced by social media users. Both scenarios reveal a troubling portrait of how modern media, equipped with knowledge of human psychology, crafts compelling narratives or content that are hard to resist or question.

This raises a critical question: Are we merely passive consumers of media, or are we participants in a broader social experiment, subtly manipulated by the intermittent rewards that media offers?

4. A Quote to note

“Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed; everything else is public relations.”

- George Orwell.

5. A Question for you

How do you think journalists should balance the need to inform the public impartially with the ethical imperative to challenge misinformation and harmful narratives?

Thanks for reading and being part of the Deep Life Journey community. If you have any reflections on this issue, please leave a comment below. Have a great weekend.

James

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