“One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken. ”
CARL SAGAN
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Information we consume is like the food we eat. If it's junk, our thinking will show that.
- Quit the news as a way of entertainment. If you want to inform yourself of something, learn from trustworthy sources.
- Engage with timeless wisdom that will improve your life.
- Stick to reliable, well-known information sources.
- Research unfamiliar sources before trusting them.
- Be aware of sites that are funded entirely by advertising.
- Don't rely on news in social media posts without sources.
- Pay attention when news items are emotionally charged, as it may be a sign of manipulation.
People that spread propaganda rely on repetition to change the beliefs and values of other people.
Propaganda can be used to improve public health or boost patriotism. But it can also be used to undermine political processes.
It has four distinct features:
- It is high-volume and multi-channel
- Rapid, continuous and repetitive
- It makes no commitment to objective reality
- It makes no commitment to consistency
Firehouse propaganda can include internet users who are paid to repeatedly post in forums and comment sections on social media disputing legitimate information and spreading misinformation. It pushes us towards feelings like paranoia, mistrust, and suspicion.
The typical explanation is that our brains take shortcuts to save energy:
- Statements presented in as easy-to-read color are judged as more likely to be true.
- Aphorisms that rhyme (like “what sobriety conceals, alcohol reveals") seem more accurate than non-rhyming versions.
The trickle of information pollution, like air pollution, builds up over time. The more we are exposed to it, the more likely we are to pick up false beliefs that are hard to get rid of.
It's our tendency to believe false information to be correct after repeated exposure to it.
The illusory truth effect is the reason why advertising and propaganda works.
Fake news includes:
- Misrepresented information
- News items are taken out of context
- Failing to check facts or do background research
- Using claims from unreliable sources at face value
- Parodies
There is so much skewed news, that we have a difficult time trying to figure out what to pay attention to and what to disregard. We also sometimes lack the expertise to assess accuracy.
RELATED IDEAS
Allowing misinformation to spread only makes it more likely for people to start believing it, so when you see someone stand up against a person for sharing misinformation, join in on the conversation.
Misinformation, or fake news, can be handled by:
- Only sharing news stories that are verified.
- Prioritizing consumption from news outlets that are meeting high ethical journalistic standards.
We often feel overwhelmed when we are exposed to a large volume of information. We also rely on secondary knowledge that does not come from any external source.
To put it another way: rightly or wrongly, we think what other people think. The digital culture has taken this reliance on social information to a new level, with new sets of hazards, anxieties, manipulation and influence.
❤️ Brainstash Inc.