Abstract
In Neal Stephenson’s fictional novel, Diamond Age (1995), the protagonist Nell acquires
a prototype of what we might today recognise as a highly sophisticated e-reader with a
voice-assistant. This e-reader, the “Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer”, uses artificial intelli-
gence to serve as Nell’s personal teacher.
What is key to the Primer is how it is designed to respond to Nell. The Primer has a theory
of Nell – her needs, her real-world situation, her abilities – and it tailors its lessons for her.
The Primer is a highly personalised artificially intelligent device. For many readers – myself
included – the Primer was a utopian vision of the bespoke digital tutors of the future. The
appearance of new media and technologies in the early 2000s all pointed to the near-term
reality of devices like Primers.
The real-life experience of personalised digital media, though, is so far from Stephen-
son’s vision that it is hard to imagine we will ever get there. Nell’s time with the Primer
develops her intellectually, emotionally, and physically. Our “bespoke” media experience,
by contrast, is more likely to turn us in on ourselves rather than guide us to live well in our
societies. Personalised media is making us more like Narcissus: our consumption is driven
by personal choices and automated algorithms that reflect what we already want to hear, see,
and consume, and we are captivated.
Central to our understanding of the problems with the personalisation of digital media
are filter bubbles and echo chambers. These phenomena are used interchangeably by some,
but in distinct ways by others. I take the position that filter bubbles and echo chambers are
distinct phenomena, but ones that raise similar epistemic worries.
I begin with a general discussion of filter bubbles and echo chambers, and I introduce the
concept of “selective exposure” as central to both phenomena. There is minimal uniformity
across uses of the terms “filter bubble” and “echo chamber”. Consequently, I divide the
later discussion into two more precise topics: homophily and polarisation. I conclude with
some future-looking comments about responsibility and the epistemic risks posed by digital
personalisation.