Date: January 27, 2025
6 a.m.: I wake up and reach for my phone to start my day by checking Facebook and Instagram. More often than not, the first few posts in my social media feeds come from local and national news outlets, especially in light of the executive orders signed by President Trump over the past couple of weeks. I decided to share a few posts on my story from my local news station, which signaled to Facebook that I was interested in news and politics. As a result, I end up seeing more targeted content related to national and political issues.
6:30 a.m.: After browsing through my social media feeds, I pop in my earbuds and use Spotify. The app tracks my listening habits, which in turn helps it serve me targeted ads for upcoming concerts and shows in my area based on my musical preferences.
7:30 a.m.: As I enjoy my breakfast, I open the Robinhood app to check on my private investments, primarily focusing on technology and ETF trading. According to Robinhood’s privacy statement, they determine my gender based on my first name. Additionally, the platform collects various data about users, including identity, contact information, and financial details.
8-12 a.m.: As I spend most of my time driving for work, I often turn to Spotify for some background music. During lunch breaks, I enjoy listening to TED Talks about the importance of media literacy and scrolling through my social media. I frequently encounter ads for upcoming shows and talks, including one by Neil deGrasse Tyson on science in my area. I also take the time to read articles on a news website about climate change. It’s fascinating to see how my reading habits—focused on science and environmental topics—influence the recommendations in my news feed. The time I spend on certain articles is likely being monitored, allowing the platform to refine its content suggestions and often presenting me with articles that resonate with my previous interests.
3-7 p.m.: I usually spend a lot of my time here with Spotify playing in the background, as I coach CrossFit for a few hours each night.
7-10:30 p.m.: During this time, I spend a few hours diving into my readings and tackling the weekly assignments on Canvas. I find myself opening several course-related articles. Unfortunately, some of these sites are cluttered with popup ads and banners, which seem to be tailored to my search history, as well as my likes and follows on social media.
Reflection
Throughout the day, I observed a distinct pattern in how I consume and engage with media, as well as the data I share. My media habits clearly reflect my interests, which center around national and political news, fitness, and music. In turn, these interests directly shape the algorithms that determine the content I am shown across platforms.
Reflecting on the learning materials from my Digital Media Literacy course, I was surprised to discover that even my television was tracking my viewing habits. It never really crossed my mind that Samsung had software that would connect to a tracking site to save behavioral data.
As I look ahead, I understand the importance of actively managing my privacy across various platforms and being more cautious about what I agree to share. Furthermore, the picture of how algorithms tailor my feed based on my past interactions and how targeted content is delivered to me through predictive technologies is much clearer. The knowledge I have gained raises my curiosity about the types of data being used, collected, and shared. The persistent feeling of being observed and the invasive nature of surveillance on social media urge me to take steps to reclaim my privacy, such as using an encryption service to protect my flow of data while in transit, as stated in this surveillance self-defense video.
