Who is Algorithmic Amplification?

Algorithmic Amplification is when big choices get made by a lot of little ones working together.

Imagine you're playing a game where every time you pick a toy, it gets a tiny bit louder, and the louder a toy is, the more likely other kids will choose it too. That’s like how algorithmic amplification works on the internet: when people see something popular, they’re more likely to click on it, which makes that thing even more popular, and so on.

Think of a party where everyone is trying to be heard over the noise. The person who shouts the loudest gets the most attention, and then they shout even louder because they like being heard. Soon, everyone starts shouting just to keep up, and the whole room becomes a loud, exciting mess, but not everyone’s voice matters equally anymore.

It's kind of like how your favorite song keeps coming on the radio, not because it's the best one, but because it was played enough times that you started liking it more. That’s algorithmic amplification in action: small choices made by many people lead to big results.