UNESCO MIL Week Youth Hackathon 2026

Your feed has a
bias. Now you can see it.

EchoBuster maps the political and ideological skew of everything you read online, then uses AI to hand you the credible perspectives your algorithm has been hiding.

72%of youth say social platforms shape their news diet
4MIL competencies built into every session
0raw browsing data ever sold
YOUR ECHO CHAMBER, VISUALIZED
LEFT RIGHT
Before: one-sided cluster After: balanced spread
The problem

Algorithms decide what you see. Most people never notice.

Engagement-driven ranking quietly narrows every feed toward what a user already agrees with, which deepens polarization and leaves critical thinking unexercised.

1-sided

Feeds can settle into a single ideological lane within days of consistent engagement.

invisible

Personalization happens silently in the background, with no indicator of what has been filtered out.

reactive

Most literacy tools flag false posts after the fact instead of the structure that isolates readers.

youth

Younger users are still forming civic identity, making early bubble formation especially consequential.

How it works

Four steps, running quietly in your browser.

EchoBuster pairs a lightweight extension with an AI recommendation engine, so the map builds itself as you read normally.

01

Read normally

The extension notices the articles and posts you open, nothing more.

02

AI classifies bias

Each item is tagged by topic, leaning, and source reliability in real time.

03

Your map builds

A live dashboard shows exactly how skewed your feed is on each topic.

04

Bubble breaks

Credible, differently-angled sources are recommended to balance the picture.

Live prototype · Function 1

Pick a topic. Watch your bubble break.

Select a topic to load a sample feed, then break the bubble to see balanced AI recommendations appear.

echobuster.app/dashboard

Your feed exposure

LIVE
Left Center Right
Select a topic above to load your simulated feed.

Balanced recommendations

AI
Left Center Right
Balanced perspectives will appear here after you break the bubble.
i

MIL tip: Try lateral reading — open a second source before forming an opinion on a topic.

Live prototype · Function 2

Paste any article. Get its bias score in seconds.

The scanner reads the page, cross-references it against the source library, and scores its language and framing.

Reading full article text and metadata
Cross-referencing against 40+ tracked sources
Scoring framing, tone, and language patterns
Generating balanced perspective summary
Left87% confidence
Framing bias
0%
Emotional language
0%
Source diversity
0%
Live prototype · Function 3

Your bias exposure, tracked over time.

Every session narrows the gap. Here is a sample reader's exposure trend across eight weeks of use.

Without EchoBuster With EchoBuster
WK 1WK 2WK 3WK 4WK 5WK 6WK 7WK 8
northlineherald.com/climate-vote-2026
3
This page leans left82%

3 balanced reads found on this topic from center and right-leaning sources.

Live prototype · Function 4

Right there in your browser, not a separate app.

Click the EchoBuster icon on any article to see its lean and balanced alternatives without leaving the page.

One-click bias checkSee a page's lean the moment you land on it.
Instant balanceBalanced sources load in the same popup, no new tab.
Private by designOnly anonymized topic and bias signals leave your device.
Live prototype · Function 5

Growing every day.

A live look at community activity across the EchoBuster network.

0bubbles broken
0active readers this week
0sources cross-checked
0%report seeing a new perspective
Live prototype · Function 6

Track your media literacy score.

Every balanced read and every completed micro-lesson moves your score.

0OUT OF 1000

Level: Getting started

Your score reflects how balanced your reading has been across topics, plus every MIL micro-lesson you have completed.

Lateral reader Bubble breaker Fact checker Source diversifier
Read 3 balanced perspectives this week
Completed the lateral reading micro-lesson
Live prototype · Function 7

Every recommendation, verified first.

Before a source is ever suggested to a reader, it runs through EchoBuster's credibility check.

Harbor IndependentSuggested source · Center
Author identity confirmed
Editorial standards on record
No prior misinformation flags
Cross-checked against 14 independent outlets
VERIFIEDCleared for recommendation to readers.
UNESCO MIL alignment

Built around four core literacy competencies.

Every interaction in EchoBuster maps to a specific Media and Information Literacy skill, not just a feature.

Access

Surfaces a wider, more representative range of credible sources on topics users already care about.

Evaluation

Every source ships with a transparent leaning tag and a plain-language reason it was recommended.

Critical thinking

Contextual micro-lessons turn each detected bubble into a short, concrete reasoning exercise.

Digital citizenship

Builds a durable habit of balanced consumption that carries over long after the session ends.

What's next

From hackathon build to classroom-ready tool.

Hackathon

Working extension prototype, live bias classification, one full topic demo.

0–3 months

Expand source datasets, refine the recommendation engine, pilot with youth testers.

3–6 months

Ship the MIL micro-lesson library and a classroom mode for educators.

6–12 months

Partner with schools and youth organizations for wider, multi-language rollout.