Common Influence

I have mentioned the concept of common influence before. I think I'm going to go into a little more depth. Of course, that doesn't mean that I'm going to write a book to provide every detail.


The general idea behind common influence is that groups of people are more likely to have certain thoughts because they share an influence. I have already brought this up with hockey. All major media outlets are set up for profit. They value the northeast and all give those teams preferential treatment. Any officials who pay attention to the hockey media will be subject to the northeast bias. This can legitimately sway things in their favor. This is one of the reasons that I always root against the northeast.

Propaganda is all about trying to influence the public. This comes in numerous forms including media, government, and the schools. This influence is why most Americans believe this country is greater than it really is. This is another form of common influence.

In a sense, common influence is a deeper form of bias. It's not about one person. It's about a group's tendencies. To an extent, variations in individual bias can balance out. A common influence ensures that it doesn't. This is why I hate common influences.