Escape the Algorithm With These Browser Extensions

Taking back control of your mind may seem like a ridiculous concept, but the web we operate in daily tells us what to think, say, and consume without us realizing. After implementing two FOSS browser extensions, I discovered liberating agency over my content consumption and it changed the way I think about browsing the web.

When I paid for X premium I thought I was going to be given a sandbox to play in and customize to my liking but I was sadly mislead. This was pure naivety because social media today simply cannot be profitable at the scale of the current behemoths without modern algorithms that can retain your attention.

After signing up, every time I launched X the “for you” tab screamed in my face with loud people I did not want to hear. To make things worse, there is a panel on the right side of the UI that shows trending news, topics, and other loud people. I realized quickly I could not filter out the noise, I would need to get used to being presented with content I had no control over.

With some research I discovered Control Panel for Twitter which immediately made the experience much, much better. This single browser extension allows you to remove almost anything you do not want to see. The experience post filter is crazy, when you refresh your browser suddenly you only see what you set out to find. The power of what content you see is finally put back into your hands.

This may not bother most people, but for people like myself who are trying to desexualize my mind, recommended content is often the enemy, and more specifically the thumbnails. Sex sells, and unfortunately you are starting from the back foot as soon as you click “male” for your gender when setting up a social account. Having images presented to you has a major impact on you’re thinking, and having control over this is a huge benefit to your ability to focus.

If you are ever curious about how these social app algorithms react to your gender, set up two Instagram accounts from scratch, one each for male and female, then take a look at what the discover page offers on both. And it is no longer an issue of refraining from using the discover page since recommended content is now injected into your main feeds.

I have heard other people say they consume a specific vein of content and thus are only recommended similar content, but my experience has not been the same. No matter if I am using a work or personal social media account, out of nowhere random sexual content will pop up as I am scrolling. I can have a feed FULL of synthesizer and audio sampling videos and out of nowhere something sexual that literally nobody asked for pops up.

And this is not about averting your eyes, obviously you can do that and it is a necessary strength to build. My problem is that if I am on the platform I will be consistently subject to these images and I have zero control over it. Worse yet, statistically speaking I am more likely to linger on these images the more they are injected into my feed. If I understand my flesh tendencies I need to put boundaries in place that give me back my sovereignty and ability to renew my mind through Christ.

As someone who has had issues with Pornography in the past, I am not fooled by the subtleties strategically used by algorithms to normalize profitable content. Once you give in, it is one of the hardest things to break away from, and therefore it is a constant battle through every day life to keep boundaries in place to protect you from sinking back into old habits.

Since these apps are part of our lives now, most people need to use them, and therefore should develop a strategy to protect themselves from the algorithm that really does not care about your well-being. It is actually a luxury to be off social media entirely because the reality is most of us need it for work or social groups. Now that I am seeing the effects of utilizing content streams without the algorithm I recommend the reader thinks about how the algorithm is affecting them this week. No need for drastic measures, but just think about what it means to be fed visuals and information you did not ask for.

Not being fed recommended content from an algorithm is jarring at first. You will sit there not knowing what to do. I could not describe this better than my experience with the same browser extension but for Youtube. Imagine not seeing shorts, recommended videos, trending videos, you name it. You will load up Youtube and sit and think about what you opened up Youtube to watch in the first place.

I was so used to just letting Youtube take me from page load to exit. But in this experience I realized that my browsing experience quite literally came with fabricated emotions. The dopamine fix from the algorithm cycle may very well have been mistaken for “interest.” Now I started thinking what if I am not actually interested in what I am watching. It is so easy to get caught up in the algorithm and keep clicking away on thumbnails and titles that catch your eye.

After cutting off the algorithm the withdrawal kicks in immediately. When you sit looking at an empty Youtube home Screen with no recommended content, and no aim or vision on what you are there to do, the reality of forgotten agency will wash over you.

If you want to feel what agency feels like on these platforms try out control panel for Twitter and Youtube. It is a crazy feeling to have to think about what type of content you are looking for and find it yourself. For all those who are also attempting to desexualize your brain I highly recommend using these extensions. I will be doing some research into applying this to mobile devices as well.