A significant portion of Americans fear an impending civil war and justify political violence, with social media often blamed for societal divisions.

• Half of Americans expect a civil war soon, and one in five sees political violence as justified.
• Across the globe, people increasingly view themselves as part of 'opposing teams'.
• Social media is commonly accused of creating a more extreme and less empathetic society.

Contrary to popular belief, studies show that extreme ideological isolation or 'filter bubbles' are not common on social media.

• The concept of online filter bubbles, where algorithms show users only agreeable content, is widely known.
• Research indicates that online experiences are not as ideologically insular as believed.
• People are actually more exposed to diverse opinions online than in real life.

The human brain is not equipped to handle the amount of disagreement present on social media, leading to 'social sorting' and increased polarization.

• Human brains evolved to foster cooperation within social structures, not to comprehend vast disagreements.
• Physical proximity historically helped bridge gaps in world views, a factor missing in online interactions.
• Online, disagreements become central to identity, exacerbating polarization.

While conflict is essential for societal evolution, societies also require social glue, which is being eroded by how our brains interact with social media.

• Historically, communities adapted to more diverse neighbors while maintaining enough similarity for cohesion.
• Tensions in society can lead to progress, but cohesion is necessary for functioning democracies.
• The social media internet has disrupted the balance by amplifying extreme views and creating false team identities.

Social media algorithms aim to maximize engagement, often by fueling anger, which leads to a distorted, extreme portrayal of opposing views.

• Social media amplifies the most controversial opinions by tapping into anger.
• Extreme views are mistakenly attributed to everyone on the 'opposite team'.
• Online polarization simplifies and distorts societal disagreements, causing individuals to seem irreconcilable.

Awareness of social media's impact on the brain can help individuals adapt, and smaller online communities may offer a solution to reduce polarization.

• Recognizing the influence of social media can lead to better self-examination of beliefs and biases.
• Adapting to the information age involves finding models that our brains can handle, like smaller online communities.
• Smaller online communities, reminiscent of pre-social media internet, offered separation and distinct cultures, which may help reduce social sorting.

Ground News, as the video's sponsor, provides tools to help users critically assess the news and understand biases, supporting media literacy.

• Ground News offers a platform to compare how different media outlets cover the same story.
• Their tools help users identify political biases and reliability of sources.
• Ground News aims to make news consumption less stressful and more transparent.