I would look at it from a different angle. Before the internet you had to have a lot of knowledge in different areas to be able to sound and behave smart, and also to make good choices.
Now you have knowledge readily available everywhere and there is much less incentive to learn things you don’t currently need, just to have it available in case you talk to someone about this topic.
This has become even more evident with AI, where you don’t have to skim through a lot of context to find your information, you just ask what you need and it is presented the way you need it right away.
NegativeLookBehind@kbin.social 7 months ago
I would argue that it’s contributed to the collective stupidity of humanity on a global scale. It’s had a lot of positive impacts as well, of course. I guess the negative ones just seem more palpable.
SeekPie@lemmy.world 7 months ago
Maybe the internet has shown us people that were already dumb but we just didn’t have a way of knowing they exist?
Black_Gulaman@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 months ago
It gave them the means to find each other and also save them a sort of megaphone to shout their stupidity.
jaybone@lemmy.world 7 months ago
And then they voted, and turns out it was like half of the voting population.
NegativeLookBehind@kbin.social 7 months ago
Yes, but now stupid people can easily collaborate with other stupid people, amplifying the echo-chamber-circle-jerk on a global, nearly instantaneous level. Furthering the stupid at a never before seen rate.
LemmysMum@lemmy.world 7 months ago
Used to be every village had their idiot. Now every idiot has their village.
LinkOpensChest_wav@lemmy.one 7 months ago
Has it, though? I grew up in the 80s, and I feel like I simply didn’t have a clue how ignorant people were or what batshit things people believed behind closed doors. Even when people disclosed to me their inner narrative, I feel like I just assumed they were joking or using extreme hyperbole.
The internet has made me realize … they weren’t joking. At all. They really believe that shit.