Misinformation is rampant in the news and in social media and this makes the author to worry a lot. This is because on a constant basis we are all exposed to this misinformation. It could be helpful if the human race had a way to protect themselves from the proliferation of misinformation and fake news. Last week he was a participant in a discussion that was hosted by Humanities Washington that focused on the subject of misinformation. Amongst the participants in that discussion were experts in political science, history, and science while he was an expert in cognitive science. The influence of misinformation is worrisome and was a topic of interest in the discussion. Although the discussion gave him hope that something can be done, but he was still pessimistic about the way the fight against misinformation was being carried out. One value that was talked about was the right to free speech and all participants spoke highly of that right. Then they focused on the fact that social media feeds are inundated with fake news and click baits, with people out to make money on the ignorance of other people. These problems were what the experts hoped to fight and make progress on.
Key Takeaways:
- We’re all exposed constantly to fake news and misinformation from the media and social media and this makes the author to worry.
- It would be a good thing if the human race had a way to protect themselves from the spread of pernicious information.
- The author had a discussion the past week with several experts from the field of political science, history and science on how to prevent the spread of false information.
“People are actively tracking the problem. People are working on solutions. Hopefully some of these will be in place before our next election cycle.”