Excellent post. Excellent warning. I quite often read quickly, skimming, seeking information, making choices rapidly. A young person I know who studies evolutionary biology tells me humans evolved to seek information. It’s what humans do. Perhaps wisdom comes in second to our knowledge-seeking. Somehow, especially now, we need to make them operate in tandem.
Donna, thank you — this is such a thoughtful way of putting it.
I agree with you completely. We are wired to scan, to seek information quickly, to make fast judgments — that’s not a moral failing, it’s biology. And platforms know this. They reward us with little dopamine hits for scrolling and reacting, not for slowing down and sitting with what we’re reading.
Mindful attention takes effort. It’s learned, not instinctive. And you’re right — wisdom doesn’t automatically follow knowledge unless we make space for it to do so.
What worries me is that we’re asking people to go against their most natural reading habits in environments that are deliberately designed to keep them from doing exactly that. Which makes this less about individual discipline and more about shared awareness.
Your point about making knowledge-seeking and wisdom operate in tandem really stayed with me. That feels like the work in front of us.
The really sad part is that the platforms aren't neutral in this. Social media doesn't just allow this kind of messaging to spread. Confidence travels faster than nuance. A post that sorts people into teams generates more engagement than one that invites deliberation. So even if every individual politician started tomorrow with the best intentions, the infrastructure they're publishing on would still reward the tribal version over the thoughtful one. The problem isn't just the message. It's the machine it runs on. How are you doing Leni?
Neela, you’re absolutely right — and I’m really glad you raised this.
The platforms themselves aren’t neutral actors here. They actively reward confidence over nuance, sorting over deliberation, tribal clarity over thoughtful uncertainty. Even with the best intentions, anyone publishing into that system is swimming with the current, not against it.
And I share your pessimism about regulation, at least in the near term. It doesn’t help that many of the people tasked with overseeing these systems don’t really understand how they work — or only understand them through competing, well-funded sales pitches from those with a strong interest in keeping things as they are.
So yes, the problem isn’t just the message. It’s the machine it runs on.
In the meantime, I think you’re right that the only real leverage we have is education — teaching ourselves, and especially the next generation, how to recognize these dynamics and navigate them with a bit more intention. We’re still woefully under-equipped for the scale of influence these systems have, let alone for exerting any real control over them.
Thank you for such a sharp addition to the conversation — and welcome back. I hope your vacation was restorative. Happy Tuesday to you too.
Sometimes I feel like we’re all just paddling in a current we didn’t choose, but it’s reassuring to know others see the same. Education is the only way.
Excellent article. Learning to slow down and read constructively is a dying art. But a necessary one, as your article illustrates. We used to do this in school - wayyyyy back. Take a newspaper editorial, an opinion piece, and parse it. I wonder if English teachers still do this? I can still hear Mrs. Johnson saying, "What is the writer really saying?". It's so important today, amidst all the messaging.
Excellent post. Excellent warning. I quite often read quickly, skimming, seeking information, making choices rapidly. A young person I know who studies evolutionary biology tells me humans evolved to seek information. It’s what humans do. Perhaps wisdom comes in second to our knowledge-seeking. Somehow, especially now, we need to make them operate in tandem.
Donna, thank you — this is such a thoughtful way of putting it.
I agree with you completely. We are wired to scan, to seek information quickly, to make fast judgments — that’s not a moral failing, it’s biology. And platforms know this. They reward us with little dopamine hits for scrolling and reacting, not for slowing down and sitting with what we’re reading.
Mindful attention takes effort. It’s learned, not instinctive. And you’re right — wisdom doesn’t automatically follow knowledge unless we make space for it to do so.
What worries me is that we’re asking people to go against their most natural reading habits in environments that are deliberately designed to keep them from doing exactly that. Which makes this less about individual discipline and more about shared awareness.
Your point about making knowledge-seeking and wisdom operate in tandem really stayed with me. That feels like the work in front of us.
The really sad part is that the platforms aren't neutral in this. Social media doesn't just allow this kind of messaging to spread. Confidence travels faster than nuance. A post that sorts people into teams generates more engagement than one that invites deliberation. So even if every individual politician started tomorrow with the best intentions, the infrastructure they're publishing on would still reward the tribal version over the thoughtful one. The problem isn't just the message. It's the machine it runs on. How are you doing Leni?
Happy Tuesday!
Neela, you’re absolutely right — and I’m really glad you raised this.
The platforms themselves aren’t neutral actors here. They actively reward confidence over nuance, sorting over deliberation, tribal clarity over thoughtful uncertainty. Even with the best intentions, anyone publishing into that system is swimming with the current, not against it.
And I share your pessimism about regulation, at least in the near term. It doesn’t help that many of the people tasked with overseeing these systems don’t really understand how they work — or only understand them through competing, well-funded sales pitches from those with a strong interest in keeping things as they are.
So yes, the problem isn’t just the message. It’s the machine it runs on.
In the meantime, I think you’re right that the only real leverage we have is education — teaching ourselves, and especially the next generation, how to recognize these dynamics and navigate them with a bit more intention. We’re still woefully under-equipped for the scale of influence these systems have, let alone for exerting any real control over them.
Thank you for such a sharp addition to the conversation — and welcome back. I hope your vacation was restorative. Happy Tuesday to you too.
Sometimes I feel like we’re all just paddling in a current we didn’t choose, but it’s reassuring to know others see the same. Education is the only way.
My vacay was perfect.
Thank you so much Leni…
Excellent article. Learning to slow down and read constructively is a dying art. But a necessary one, as your article illustrates. We used to do this in school - wayyyyy back. Take a newspaper editorial, an opinion piece, and parse it. I wonder if English teachers still do this? I can still hear Mrs. Johnson saying, "What is the writer really saying?". It's so important today, amidst all the messaging.