Two Trumpy Lessons: Digital Echo Chambers and Political Tribalism

An Easter Weekend reckoning with polarised politics viscerally taught me two things

A few thoughts on Trump, our media consumption, and polarization – along with a mea culpa.

This reflection stems from an event during Easter weekend in South Africa while visiting my family, which upset both me and my relatives significantly. I learned several things from this experience, some of which I already knew but was interesting to see affect me personally.

During the April visit, a heated discussion erupted over Trump and Biden. When my family members brought up mass immigration into the US, I reacted with unexpected intensity. The irony wasn't lost on me – I had long criticized South African liberals and progressives for their lack of sympathy toward ordinary South Africans on immigration issues. These concerns weren't abstract: they touched on the state's ability to provide basic services. South Africa needs to address its own problems and care for its people before absorbing millions from other countries. And I had often pointed out how people in wealthy suburbs remained disconnected from ordinary South Africans' daily struggles.

And it's a longstanding concern of mine that both liberals and progressives underappreciate the importance of borders and local communities.  Years ago, I visited Madrid's City Hall, which displayed leftist pro-immigration posters declaring "No Human is Illegal." While I appreciate the sentiment (and it chimes with the values I grew up with, values that you find all over the New Testament), this isn't how human societies function. It's disconnected from how most people think about these issues, especially during economic and social stress. The Biden administration's approach was divorced from reality and bound to be a vote looser.

Many of these South African sentiments about immigration mirror those expressed by Republicans and others concerned about immigration in the US. In both countries, while some opinions stem from racism and xenophobia (and, in South Africa’s case, an often deadly variant), others arise from legitimate worries about social cohesion and economic competition. So why did I react so defensively?

First, I didn't understand the extent of what was happening. I’m a total news junky. My bias was suspecting that my family was misled by fake news — while I was ignorant! So, despite typically being well-informed about major trends and flashpoints, I hadn't realized the scale of immigration that occurred after Biden took office. I found this to be a bit of a shock. This blind spot partly stems from spending less time on X – I had reduced my usage because I disagree with Elon Musk's absolutist (and, as it turned out, hypocritical) free speech position that has made X ground zero for misinformation, and I didn't want to support that. But even if I had been more active there, how algorithmic filtering works on X would likely have prevented me from grasping the situation. It's concerning how we now exist in entirely different media ecosystems. It impacts both left and right.

The reality was stark: this period saw the largest immigration surge in U.S. history. Context matters – the U.S. border had been sealed during COVID, suppressing immigration in Trump's final years. When restrictions lifted, pent-up pressure exploded. However, Biden's actions amplified this surge by relaxing standard immigration restrictions, going beyond merely reversing Trump's harshest policies like family separation. His approach proved considerably more permissive than Obama's.

The administration eventually grasped their mistake. As immigration hit record highs, so did deportations. Biden sought a bipartisan deal for increased border funding, which Trump, cajoling the House of Representatives, blocked, openly admitting it would help Biden politically. Though border crossings eventually fell well below Trump-era levels in Biden's final months, the damage was done.

So why, then, did I become so emotional defending Biden's position? Beyond my initial ignorance and bias regarding the scope of the situation, there are key differences between South Africa and the USA. The USA is arguably the world's wealthiest country with near full employment. Most economists suggest that without this immigration surge, American inflation would have been higher. America's problem isn't people competing for a small pie – these newcomers strengthen its economy. Studies suggest this immigration surge even boosted wages for poor American workers by expanding their industries (see link). South Africa faces the opposite challenge – catastrophic unemployment and economic crisis.

Yet something deeper bothered me: seeing my Christian family fixate on this issue in the world's richest nation, where immigrants arrive desperate and destitute. Even deeper still came this emotional reaction: This is a Trump talking point. How is this man different from South Africa’s Jacob Zuma, except with the backing of the world’s wealthiest people? Still, I should have acknowledged my agreement with their core point: social cohesion matters more than economic gains. AND this practicality: this issue would likely play a decisive role in Biden's electoral struggles.

What did I learn besides how we suffer from a polarised media sphere? A practical example of how knowledge is, to use a fancy term, “socially constructed”. See fascinating articles here and here. Our opinions aren't purely rational – they shift with tribal allegiances. Our truth is based on our social connections. And just as Republicans once championed immigration and free markets while leftists like Bernie Sanders advocated border control, I found myself trapped in a reflexive opposition to the right’s new position. Instead of seeking common ground, I let tribal instincts drive my response. And that’s a real pity.

More than ever, it is crucial that people keep talking and seek common ground. Research shows that both the left and the right completely overestimate the prevalence of extreme opinions on the other side. This challenge is made immeasurably harder without responsible leaders, but we must keep trying.