Ideology is a broadly held system of beliefs….an identifiable intellectual movement with specific positions on a range of topics. Personal values are more idiosyncratic than those derived from an ideology, but represent a desire to govern from principle and policy.
The personalization of the Internet by search engines decreases the likelihood of finding information that challenges our existing views and biases. (This is similar to viewers watching only Fox News if they are conservative or MSNBC if they are liberal.)
The issue with this is that people seek out information sources that reinforce their own way of thinking and filter out those that do not. In addition to news sources, this could mean friends and social circles, too. This is called confirmation bias, which is a tendency to selectively latch onto information that confirms our existing beliefs.
A few years ago, our pastor held a class for “blues” in a “red” state….as well as “reds” in a “blue” city. Basically saying…we need to be civil in our conversation to hear the opposing side of the argument with an open mind.
In my family, where one cannot “choose” another family member besides me….I have some with opposite views who enjoy the friendly discourse, and others who get too frustrated with the opposing view and cannot handle the conversation.
Are you open to hearing the opposite perspective, in a civil exchange?
