This is an FYI piece……I do not expect those who “know” the facts to employ any of these suggestions…..but I had to try.
So….One More Time……
There has been lots written about the use of “Fake News”…..some of it not so pretty….and then there are the ever popular diatribes about what is fake and what is real…..
Basically in our society we are at the point where the only “real” news is the news that supports one’s small thoughts…..it is kinda like propaganda….
There are so few that know what a propaganda piece is or is not……I have tried to help my readers discern what is what……several years ago I wrote a couple of posts that pointed out the characteristics of propaganda….
https://lobotero.com/2013/01/11/what-is-propaganda/
https://lobotero.com/2014/01/06/propaganda-2-0/
I bring this up because there is a way to tell what is fake and what is not…..well it works for me and that assumes that the reader wants to know the difference….but I am starting to think that that is a wrong assumption on my part.
Some readers have asked how does one know what is fake and what is not….for those that actually want to know here is the formula…..
- Crazy claims. We’ve been told for years that the best way to spot a con artist is to remember that if the outcome he promises is too good to be true, it probably is. The same concept is applicable here: If a “news” story is too crazy to be true, it probably is.
- Incredulous introduction. Watch out for phrases in the top of the story that acknowledge the incredible, unbelievable nature of what’s coming. Examples are “As preposterous as it might appear,” or “Unimaginable as it may seem.”
- Audacious repetition. Consider this scenario: Your coworker walks into your office with a stunned look on his face and says, “Are you ready for this? Santa Claus is sick!” Your natural response is to roll your eyes and say something like, “Go away, I don’t have time for this.” But then he looks at you with a troubled expression on his face and says, “No, I mean it, Santa’s really sick.” The moment he says that, he has suddenly captured your attention, and you find yourself asking something like, “What do you mean, Santa Claus is sick?” At that point, without realizing it, you’ve begun the process of buying into the fake story. You’re now asking a question about it, whereas just a moment earlier, you were telling the guy to get out, because you were too busy for this nonsense. Suddenly it matters in your life, because while Santa is fictitious to you, he’s not fictitious to your kids—it has some relevance to you. Writers of fake news stories have learned the value of leveraging the psychology of repetition—the more something is repeated, the more believable it becomes. Consider how Madison Avenue advertising works: The magic number is three. If the consumer receives the message three times, research has shown that he may not buy the product immediately, but the door has been opened to his willingness to at least consider buying it.
- Hyper hyperbole. Over-the-top statements of degree permeate the story. The news isn’t just “significant,” it’s “absolutely astounding.” Similarly, if the story has to do with some misfortune, it’s not just “serious” or “bad,” it’s “the worst thing we have ever seen.”
- Validation void. Invariably, fake news lacks substance in terms of sourcing—the sources tend to be vague and unidentifiable. At the same time, there tends to be no actionable information in the story, in the sense that there’s nowhere within reason to go to attempt to validate it.
This works well….but I have NO illusion that there will be those people that bend over for whatever confirms their thoughts…..without checking them out…..outrageous claims only fires them up more…..and then there are those “trust me” moments……that is when I start to roll my eyes…..trust without validation is STUPID!
Me? I dig for answers…but I seem to think ALL news is fake until I check it out in detail…..I think that is what we all should do….but sadly most are too goddamn lazy for any work….they prefer to rely on CRAP for their “knowledge”.
So you continue to believe crap…..I will do what I do best…..DIG!
You see I refuse to read only partisan bullshit…… and make NO mistake it is bullshit……but then I do not expect others to put in the time to learn anything……it takes a special kind of person to look at all sides….and there are damn few of us anymore.
This will be my last post on the subject of “Fake News”……(to everyone’s relief I am sure)
Details on the incident are still emerging. The USNS Bowditch deployed 2 such drones somewhere in the South China Sea. The Pentagon described the incident as occurring “about 100 miles” from Subic Bay, which likely puts it in the vicinity of the Spratly Islands.