Squiz Shortcuts: What is the algorithm?

What you see on your social media feeds could be about to change, and it’s all to do with the algorithm - a tool used by social media companies to show us what they think we want to see. How it impacts our society has increasingly come under scrutiny, and now the government is drafting legislation that could give us the option to opt out of it. So in this Squiz Shortcut, we’ll dive into what the algorithm is, how it got this way, and how it might change… Squiz Recommends:  Reading: This article in The Conversation is a good explainer about the whole opt-out discussion Reading: And this piece from the ABC is an interesting read where the reporter tries to outsmart the algorithm - without success…  SPONSORED - CommBank Next Chapter program offers free and confidential help, even if you don’t bank with them. To listen to the full Future Women’s There’s No Place Like Home series - made in partnership with CommBank Next Chapter.  Listen to the Squiz Kids coverage of the Bondi terror attack and the Nepal floods. Hosted by Andrew Williams and Anna Pykett Researched by Andrew Williams Got a suggestion for a Squiz Shortcut topic? We'd love to hear it - email us at [email protected] ⁠Squiz Shortcuts⁠ is your back story to the big news stories… Want the email version? Sign up for the free Shortcuts newsletter here.