It’s no secret—though many don’t seem to notice, understand, or care about the impact this is having on them—that social media algorithms are designed to keep us hooked.¹ To do this, they learn what we tend to click, like, watch, and share so our feeds can continue to provide us with more of the same; even the fact that we call it our “feed” should tell us something about what’s happening here. Over time, this personalization creates echo chambers², where we are repeatedly exposed to ideas that reinforce what we already believe rather than challenge us.

From my vantage point, this leads to all sorts of problems: narrow-mindedness, close-mindedness, pride, anger, contention, depression, fear, anxiety, insecurity, false security, and even a distortion of truth itself.

The Priests of Noah Are Like Your Social Media Feed

Recently, a friend pointed out to me that this phenomenon isn’t new. We were talking about King Noah in the Book of Mormon—a story I’ve written about before—and the comparison was striking. King Noah surrounded himself with self-appointed priests who told him exactly what he wanted to hear rather than what he needed to hear. When the prophet Abinadi called the people to repentance, they were offended, angered, and ultimately complicit in his death.

What makes the account even more sobering is that King Noah almost listened to Abinadi. Abinadi’s words clearly affected him, and he was on the verge of releasing the prophet. But then “the priests lifted up their voices” (Mosiah 17:12), drowning out truth with affirmation, and King Noah caved.

Likewise, our self-appointed online “priests” are designed to affirm our thinking! Believing that everything they are telling us is ‘good’ or ‘correct’ is a dangerous line of thinking. Or, more accurately, a dangerous line of not thinking.

Have we, in subtle ways, abdicated our own responsibility to think for ourselves? Have we outsourced discernment to an algorithm that tells us what to think, believe, or feel based on what keeps us scrolling?

Clearing Your Feed Is Like Listening to Abinadi

Most social media platforms now offer the ability to “reset suggested content” or “refresh your feed.” It might not be a bad idea to actually do that. In a sense, it would be like inviting an Abinadi into our social media feed. Someone willing to tell us the truth. Someone who offers a different perspective. Someone who says what we need to hear, not just what we want to hear.

Clearing our algorithms can be a small but meaningful act of spiritual resistance. It can be like Alma blocking out the voices of Noah’s priests, allowing Abinadi’s words to take root, and choosing a different path. That choice didn’t just change Alma—it turned him into a force for good in the lives of others.

Perhaps the same can be true for us if we’re willing to step outside our echo chambers, clear our feeds, and listen.³

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Lead image by Shutter Speed on Unsplash

1. see “Everything you need to know about social media algorithms” at sproutsocial.com, accessed 12/2/25
2. an echo chamber is “an environment in which the same opinions are repeatedly voiced and promoted, so that people are not exposed to opposing views”. See “echo chamber” at dictionary.com
3. special thank to Ethan S. for inspiring this post