One should never discuss religion or politics in polite company. That’s alright then because social media has never been particularly polite and these days you can’t swing a cat video for hitting a Trump or Clinton-based rant.

Are you tired of all the politics? The Pew Research Centre says one third of Americans are “worn out” by the amount of political content we encounter online.

Debate is healthy but 59 per cent of those surveyed by Pew said they found it “stressful and frustrating” as opposed to “interesting and informative” to discuss politics with people they disagree with on Facebook, Twitter et al.

These discussions seem to be divisive more than anything else because 64 per cent say that after talking on social media with those of opposing political views they are left feeling like they have even less in common with them, labelling these online exchanges as less respectful than face-to-face chinwags about politics.

[ http://www.pewinternet.org/2016/10/25/the-political-environment-on-social-media/Opens in new window ]