Fact Checking is really two things and it's difficult to discern at times, especially with how Facebook, Twitter, and other's moderated. Fact checking can be a legitimate search for the truth to correct inaccuracies. It can also be used to discredit and suppress ideas you disagree with. The problem is when the first strays too far into the second, and I think that is what happened. Social network moderators feel empowered, able to control with pretty much absolute power what people see. It is perfectly logical that this power could go to their heads.
Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.
The idea was that people got hoodwinked by whisper campaigns, conspiracy theories and outright lies by public figures.
Did fact checks curb the spread of misinformation? Hard to say.
What makes mis/dis info hard to combat is that the people targeted by it already want to believe it.
You could construe fact checking as another top-down solution to a bottom-up problem. This is not necessarily bad; top-down is sometimes more feasible.
Maybe not save "us", but possibly the Rohingya during the Myanmar genocide, which was fueled by hate speech and disinformation spread through and promoted by Facebook.
Looking at the US politics from the outside and talking to a few friends over there who happen to be queer, as well as seeing similar trends in the EU, it makes me sad.
Billionaires having no integrity and pandering to whoever is in power, that I can understand.
But the fact that enough people chose the party on the political right when their platform is openly built on various phobias and hate, that’s sickening. Seeing people stream the election results and others coming into the stream and saying “Your body, my choice.” which frankly sounds like hate speech.
I’m not even sure whether the majority of people were ignorant of all the hateful conduct, or whether they enjoy it themselves. Even things like comments on most social media sites, such overwhelming amounts of hatred and often misinformation.
I feel pretty disillusioned with the human nature.
Molitor5901|1 year ago
Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.
mcphage|1 year ago
RajT88|1 year ago
Did fact checks curb the spread of misinformation? Hard to say.
What makes mis/dis info hard to combat is that the people targeted by it already want to believe it.
You could construe fact checking as another top-down solution to a bottom-up problem. This is not necessarily bad; top-down is sometimes more feasible.
kennu|1 year ago
KronisLV|1 year ago
Billionaires having no integrity and pandering to whoever is in power, that I can understand.
But the fact that enough people chose the party on the political right when their platform is openly built on various phobias and hate, that’s sickening. Seeing people stream the election results and others coming into the stream and saying “Your body, my choice.” which frankly sounds like hate speech.
I’m not even sure whether the majority of people were ignorant of all the hateful conduct, or whether they enjoy it themselves. Even things like comments on most social media sites, such overwhelming amounts of hatred and often misinformation.
I feel pretty disillusioned with the human nature.
unknown|1 year ago
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znpy|1 year ago
I agree with this line of reasoning. I’m just baffled we’re only calling this out now.
They’ve always been doing this. Even with previous administrations.
unknown|1 year ago
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