Outrage Overload

A Connors Institute podcast

Outrage 62 – How Systems Like Community Notes on Twitter/X Aim to Break the Cycle of Misinformation – Paul Resnick

Aired Apr 16 2025

Algorithms. Misinformation. Echo chambers. These buzzwords dominate conversations about digital media and political polarization. But what if the same technology that fuels outrage and division could also help us bridge divides and lower the temperature.

In this episode of Outrage Overload, we dive deep into the role of technology in shaping what we see—and believe—online. Our guest, Paul Resnick, has been at the forefront of this research for decades. As a professor at the University of Michigan and a pioneer in recommender and reputation systems, Resnick has explored how digital platforms influence our choices, from the news we consume to the way online spaces are moderated.

One of his latest areas of focus? Community Notes on X (formerly Twitter)—a system designed to crowdsource fact-checking across ideological lines. Could this be a model for reducing misinformation and depolarizing online discourse? Or are we still trapped in the same old cycles of digital outrage?

What’s Inside This Episode?

We’ve all heard the warnings about echo chambers and filter bubbles, but is that really what’s happening? Paul Resnick shares insights from his research on social media algorithms, revealing surprising truths about how content is curated—and how it shapes our political and social landscapes. We also dive into Community Notes on Twitter (X) and explore whether crowd-sourced fact-checking can actually cut through the noise of misinformation. Can algorithms be redesigned to reduce outrage rather than amplify it? And what does all of this mean for the future of democracy? Listen in to find out.

Paul Resnick is the Michael D. Cohen Collegiate Professor of Information at the University of Michigan School of Information and a leading expert in recommender and reputation systems. A pioneer in the field, his work on the GroupLens system earned the 2010 ACM Software Systems Award. He is also the co-author of Building Successful Online Communities: Evidence-Based Social Design. With a background in mathematics from Michigan and a Ph.D. in computer science from MIT, Resnick’s research explores how digital platforms shape information flow and social interaction.