RENO, Nevada – In a stunning revelation, a social media user admits to changing his political viewpoints because of a friend’s relentless posts. “I couldn’t believe it myself,” says Milton Abercarp (not his real name) of Reno, Nevada. “I guess he just kind of wore me down.” 

Abercarp, a registered Republican, would frequently engage in online debates with Samuel T. Burnid (not his real name), a former high school classmate. “We hadn’t seen each other or spoken to one another in years, and one day I saw his profile online,” explains Abercarp. “So, naturally, I started sending him Breitbart and The Federalist links fifty times a day.” 

“Well, he sent me links to Mother Jones and Pod Save America,” Avercarp continued. “I never thought to actually read them, but when I finally did, you know, I had to admit that they made some good points. And finally, I came to realize that my views were based on grotesque distortions and misrepresentations of fact. At first, I thought I was dying.”

“It’s the first time I believe this has ever happened in the history of social media,” says Dr. Anita Cogburn, a Professor of Popular Polarization. “It’s very troubling because if we are able to bring people from one side to another, then how will media platforms be able to continue monetizing fear and hatred? And quite frankly, I don’t know if I want to live in a world where people can’t do that.”