You might think this is an exaggeration.
Look around you.
Think about the past few years.
Even if the technology doesn’t change, there are some antidotes for that sort of manipulation.
Go out of your way to find other entry points.
Always compare what you see on the web with your direct experience — not what you see on TV or what an “authority” says — what you see with your own eyes.
Whenever you talk to people IRL try to find out about their direct experiences— not what movie they watched on Netflix, or the news.
If they want to talk about how their kids cried all night or how their knee is aching — listen to them! — that’s information you can’t learn anywhere else, and form your frame of references for judging things you see online.
Cultivate real life connections as much as you can.
Be optimistic. We will invent better ways to connect online.
Be skeptical. Probably someone telling you they found it is lying or mistaken.