“O tempora! O mores!” (Oh, the times! Oh, the customs!) — Roman statesman and orator Cicero
IN today’s social media landscape, “echo chamber” has become a buzzword. At first, it sounded strange to a baby boomer like me.
The Oxford Dictionary broadly defines an echo chamber as an environment where a person encounters only the beliefs and opinions that mirror their own, reinforcing existing views while filtering out alternative ideas.
Online, we are flooded with information from Facebook, Instagram, X, and other platforms — some of it true, some false, and some outright fabricated or manipulated. Managing this deluge of content has become essential, especially since much of what goes viral spreads rapidly through newsfeeds and algorithm-driven recommendations.
This is where the “filter bubble” comes in. Search engines and social media platforms track our browsing history and preferences — often through the “accept all cookies” prompts we click without a second thought — to curate what we see. This creates an algorithmic feedback loop where users mostly encounter content that reflects their existing views.
As American author, activist, and entrepreneur Eli Pariser put it, our identity shapes what we see on social media.
Over time, these digital chambers evolve into social groups, online communities, or media habits where certain ideas are echoed repeatedly without being challenged. This is the essence of groupthink: people become more confident in their views, even when those views are incomplete or biased, and it becomes harder to consider alternative perspectives or find better solutions through open discussion.
In effect, it operates as a quiet form of self-censorship, since people hear mainly opinions that align with their own.
This tendency is compounded by what Wikipedia describes as the Dunning-Kruger effect — a cognitive bias in which people with limited knowledge in a subject overestimate their own understanding. As the old saying goes, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Echo chambers aren’t limited to social media. In workplaces, friend groups, and student study circles, people may unintentionally — or even deliberately — surround themselves with others who share their views, discouraging critical thinking and open discussion.
Danger
The danger is that when people only hear perspectives that confirm their own beliefs and dismiss opposing views without scrutiny, their opinions tend to harden and polarize, sometimes tipping into extremism. As the Filipino saying goes, “Mahirap magbulag-bulagan sa katotohanan” — it is hard to willfully blind oneself to the truth.
To counter this, we must actively seek out diverse sources of information and engage with different viewpoints, rather than relying on a single source. Doing so fosters critical thinking and open dialogue, making it easier to adapt to new perspectives.
Critical thinking helps us recognize our own biases and stay receptive to opposing arguments, while an open mind allows for more balanced, constructive exchanges of ideas. Remaining neutral and independent in our judgments helps us see the full picture and make better-informed decisions.
Professional CPAs must always keep an open mind. Let’s avoid the echo chamber mentality.
Christopher U. Ismael is the CEO of Ismael and Co. CPAs, and a member of the Association of Certified Public Accountants in Public Practice (ACPAPP).