Are we confusing outrage with truth in the age of algorithms? | The Ethical Life podcast

Episode 231: Hosts Richard Kyte and Scott Rada explore how living inside algorithmic media is reshaping not just what we see, but how we understand the world — and each another.

The conversation begins with a simple but unsettling observation: moments of national trauma linger emotionally long after the events themselves, leaving many people feeling brittle, exhausted and constantly on edge. At the same time, credible data suggests that in many measurable ways — from declines in violent crime and overdoses to medical breakthroughs and rising wages — life in the United States has improved.

So why does it feel so hard to even hear that kind of information?

The hosts dig into the ethical implications of media systems designed to maximize engagement rather than understanding. They unpack how personalized feeds, whether on social platforms, news sites or entertainment services, reward fear, outrage and conflict, while quieter forms of progress struggle to surface. Over time, this creates a distorted sense of reality, one in which crisis feels constant and improvement feels suspect.

The discussion moves beyond social media to consider how algorithms shape everything from the news we read to the music we discover. Kyte reflects on what’s been lost as we’ve traded broad exposure for hyper-personalization, while Rada shares how “big if true” rumors spread faster than verification in an environment with few editorial checks. Together, they ask what happens to moral judgment, empathy and civic responsibility when attention is continually pulled toward the most extreme claims.

Importantly, the episode resists easy answers. The hosts acknowledge that real suffering persists and that serious problems demand attention. But they argue that ignoring genuine progress carries its own ethical cost, especially when despair becomes a moral default that discourages engagement and collective action.

About the hosts

Scott Rada is a digital strategist with Lee Enterprises, and Richard Kyte is the director of the D.B. Reinhart Institute for Ethics in Leadership at Viterbo University in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He is also the author of "Finding Your Third Place: Building Happier Communities (and Making Great Friends Along the Way)."