--- description: Not the site's algorithm, as many researchers have found title: Facebook Study Says Users Make Their News Feed Less Diverse image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd40c6dbd633d3df9/6987788f55a85964a0a851da/iphone-social-apps-facebook-2.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Facebook Study Says Users Make Their News Feed Less Diverse by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 7, 2015 8:10 PM CUT  Elizabeth Renstrom for TIME by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 7, 2015 8:10 PM CUT The long-held notion that Facebook’s algorithm leads to the creation of “echo chambers” among users isn’t exactly true, according to a report published Thursday in the journal [_Science_.](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2015/05/06/science.aaa1160.full "undefined") After studying the accounts of 10 million users, data scientists at Facebook found that liberals and conservatives are regularly exposed to at least some “crosscutting” political news, meaning stories that don’t conform to their pre-existing biases. The algorithm for Facebook’s News Feed leads conservatives to see 5% less liberal content than their friends share and liberals to see 8% less conservative content. But the biggest impact on what users see comes from what they clicked on in the past. Liberals are about 6% less likely to click on crosscutting content, according to the research, and conservatives are about 17% less likely. Facebook’s algorithm serves users stories based in part on the content they have clicked in the past. Ultimately, the study suggest it’s not Facebook’s algorithm that’s making your profile politically one-sided, it’s your own decisions to click on or ignore certain stories. However, some observers [argue](http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/niftyc/archives/1062 "undefined") the Facebook study is flawed because of sampling problems and interpretation issues. ### This Is What Your Facebook Profile Looked Like Over the Last 11 Years  The Original Facebook Group Page, 2004\. Before people realized how awesome pictures are. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2005\. Back when Facebook looked a little bit like MySpace. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page Facelift, 2005\. The "the" is finally dropped. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2006\. You no longer need to be reminded "this is you" at the top of your profile page. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2007\. Every profile update still had to begin with "is," forcing you to talk about yourself in the third person. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2008\. The wall. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2009\. It only took five years for Facebook to create easy-to-find privacy settings. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2010\. Facebook starts to get pretty. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2011\. Zuckerberg realizes that people love pictures, usually of animals. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2012\. The timeline allows you (or your parents) to trace your life from birth to death. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2013-2014\. Facebook introduced a new app, Paper, on Monday. Courtesy of Facebook  Facebook Profile Page, 2014-2015\. Facebook updated both the newsfeed algorithm and the privacy settings. 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