Weapons of Math Destruction

With political messaging, as with most WMDs, the heart of the problem is almost always the objective. Change that objective from leeching off people to helping them, and a WMD is disarmed—and can even become a force for good.

They deal with different parties separately so that none of them knows what the other is hearing. This asymmetry of information prevents the various parties from joining forces—which is precisely the point of a democratic government.

Successful microtargeting, in part, explains why in 2015 more than 43 percent of Republicans, according to a survey, still believed the lie that President Obama is a Muslim.

Direct mail was microtargeting on training wheels.

Some 73 percent of Americans, according to a Pew Research report, believe that search results are both accurate and impartial.

In other words, Facebook’s algorithms can affect how millions of people feel, and those people won’t know that it’s happening.

Being around a grump is likely to turn you into one, if only briefly. But would such contagions spread online?

After comparing voting records, researchers estimated that their campaign had increased turnout by 340,000 people.

During the 2010 and 2012 elections, Facebook conducted experiments to hone a tool they called the “voter megaphone.”