The Importance Of We Think Critically In Responding Information Bias in Indonesian social media

 

The Importance Of We Think Critically In Responding

Information Bias in Indonesian social media

By Cakbro

(Members of the Writing Bureaucrats Community)

 

A.   Introduction

Do you still remember the case of being stabbed by a state official, namely the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs General Wiranto last year? There is a lot of information that the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs was suspected of being stabbed by a terrorist, but the issues or information that developed in Social Media considered it only as a fabricated event. Even the Director General of IKP, Kemkominfo asked the public to think logically and not be provoked by these negative issues. In the current Post-Truth era, the fact of an event does not affect public opinion but negative issues that evoke emotions into false beliefs for the community. Indonesia is the largest user of social media in the world and has the potential to become fertile land as a target for the post-truth phenomenon. (The Post Truth Era, People Are Considered More Emotionally Responding to Issues in Medis, Tribunnews.com, 14/10/19).

Even Oxford Dictionaries in 2016 included post-truth diction as a new word that post truth is an adjective meaning a situation where emotional appeal is more influential in shaping public opinion than objective facts. If we remember in the previous decade, the internet was a medium of information for the enrichment of science and knowledge, or news/information in textual form with very diverse scientific backgrounds.

B.   The Role of Social Media Algorithm Engines in Refracting Information

But at this time, the internet is very much different in terms of content and form since the emergence of facebook, twitter, youtube as social media. The positive impact is the enthusiasm of the community as social media users who are free to create and express themselves. Along with the rapid increase in users, social media seems to change as a platform that is no longer a mere entertainment media or social network. Social media is now like an official information medium for users, such as blogs. Youtube (vlog) now also plays a role as a journalism media.

With social media, people use their feelings more than their reasoning. Meanwhile, social media providers no longer have guidelines/guidelines because they base their business on (profits) solely by fertilizing information according to user orders or interests based on their algorithmic engine. The role of the internet is now starting to shift its function and no longer makes users smarter because of knowledge information, it actually makes users more stupid because information can turn into disinformation.

Actually, the algorithm is the main engine as a decision maker in providing information. However, the provider uses an algorithm engine to provide information based on the user's interests (wants) with the excuse of pampering users to maximize time so that they are always (spending time) on the social media platform. In other words, the algorithm engine is not equipped to select the correctness of the information offered, but follows the trend of information or issues that occur whether the information is true or not.

Meanwhile, the public as social media users do not seem to have the ability to reason (think clearly) to sort through the information received. Because basically social media providers only care about business, sometimes they look for issues/information that evokes the emotions of the user so that they continue to follow (always stay on the path of social media).

In social media or known in cyberspace, we can no longer recognize or distinguish a person's physical or digital identity because of various backgrounds, not knowing young and old, educated or not, ethnicity or race from where, etc. Anyone has the right to be there to just read, provide info, comment or just enjoy and follow the flow of the information.

In the world of social media, we cannot discredit someone because of the incorrect information provided or behavior and other attitudes. An uproar will occur only a small problem (trivial) but can be a user's attention, immediately the opinion of the user community is formed in a fragmented manner and can be considered radical, anything that is unthinkable or impossible can actually become real. How many victims of social media occur without paying attention to the truth of the information.

C.   The Importance of Critical Thinking in Using Social Media.

Rocky Gerung, a doctor of philosophy (often known for appearing on various media pages) in an event organized by the Women's Journal Foundation with the theme “Thinking Critically” (27/11/17) stated that our country has a shortage of public common sense in dealing with social media. Social media is supposed to be a source of knowledge, but the reality that we encounter is the opposite. The distorted function of social media has now become a place for hatred, provocation and all forms of injustice to grow.

Critical thinking does not belong to academics, the absence of critical power causes the phenomenon of hardening the beliefs of an understanding or ideology (fanaticism), resulting in a sense of sentiment and cognitive bias in acting in the world of social media. In fact, it is not uncommon for banality to occur as an endemic that infects society, even entering the realm of debate and discussion in academia.

This is because people tend to ignore the main substance of the problem or actual facts, but prioritize feelings (emotions) on developing problems. Another condition occurs because social media providers through algorithm engines (for personal gain) try to flood the problem so that users are always on the social media platform.

D. How We Can Think Critically

We need to know that the mind is a form of ideas and mental processes. Thinking will help us sharpen the sharpness of the brain. Thinking is the process of the brain collecting and analyzing information, this collection of information is needed to make decisions, create concepts, do reasoning, and make problem solving.

Critical thinking according to Iskandar (2009) is a reasoning activity that is carried out reflexively or suddenly, critically, creatively, and oriented to the thought process that results in the formation of a concept, and an analysis. The process is obtained from a mindset based on observation, experience, reflection, action, and communication.

While Cece Wijaya (1996) revealed that critical thinking is the ability to argue in an organized manner. Critical thinking teaches to analyze an idea or ideas to be more specific and end at a conclusion. In the process, things will happen such as sharply distinguishing, thinking carefully, choosing the best, identifying, and evaluating and developing the idea or ideas to be even better. This is supported by Elaine Johnson (2002) who argues that critical thinking is a pure process of brain activity or mentality which aims to solve problems, make decisions, aim to invite or be persuasive, analyze assumptions, and conduct scientific research.

One person's way of thinking is different from another. This is what is called a difference of perception or point of view. Ways that can be done by honing our mind's ability to remember or solve problems are done regularly. Get into the habit of setting aside some time for reflection. Critical thinking will help us get better at solving problems or making decisions. Critical thinking is a thinking process in which information becomes a decision or conclusion. This is indeed not easy to do, therefore we need to practice and get used to it every day on a regular and ongoing basis.

D.   Closing

After we understand the factors that cause information refraction in Social Media, we need to respond to it by re-fertilizing to think critically. We need to think critically to find conclusions and decisions that are informative, useful, and accountable. Because these decisions and conclusions are obtained from the analysis of various opinions, assumptions, and various ideas.

There are differences in ideas or ideas for information from social media pages, we should act wisely to always think critically, namely to find clarity, similarities, and differences from each group that gives the idea. The ability to think critically allows us to reanalyze, identify, evaluate, consider, redevelop all ideas and all assumptions so that in the end it will lead to a decision or a conclusion that is considered the best and can be done.

 

 Referensi:

1.      Tribunnews, Era Post-Truth: Masyarakat Dinilai Lebih Emosional Tanggapi Isu di Medsos, 14/10/19.https://www.tribunnews.com/nasional/2019/10/14/era-post-truth-masyarakat-dinilai-lebih-emosional-tanggapi-isu-di-medsos.

2.      Rocky Gerung, Berpikir Kritis sebagai Upaya Memulihkan Akal Sehat Publik (5/12/2017), Dok. Jurnal Perempuan. https://www.jurnalperempuan.org/warta-feminis/rocky-gerung-berpikir-kritis-sebagai-upaya-memulihkan-akal-sehat-publik

3.    Absurditas Media Sosial dan Buntunya Nalar Kritis Publik, Siyana Khamdi Syukria, (24/12020), In Suara Kita .  https://jalandamai.net/absurditas-media-sosial-dan-buntunya-nalar-kritis-publik.html