The title of the following article from February's Wired may seem counter-intuitive, but that's exactly why it's such an interesting read:
Clive Thompson on How More Info Leads to Less KnowledgeClick the title to read the whole piece; it's worth it. It's also a concept I've been talking up to my friends for several months now: giving people easy access to wrong information is just as harmful as blocking their access to the real kind.
... After years of celebrating the information revolution, we need to focus on the countervailing force: The disinformation revolution. The ur-example of what [Stanford Historian Robert] Proctor calls an agnotological campaign is the funding of bogus studies by cigarette companies trying to link lung cancer to baldness, viruses—anything but their product. ...
There's been a tremendous proliferation of sites and e-mail blasts dedicated to spreading rumor, innuendo and out-right lies in order to attack the innovative ideas that threaten the profits and outdated worldview of the status quo.
There's more of a need than ever for a healthy public skepticism, and the ability to filter authoritative news sources from manipulative ones. Without that, we may find ourselves retreating into a new Dark Age. Speaking of which, I'm overdue for another of my philosophical posts.
11 comments:
The whole question is fascinating. There is a clear hierarchy of data, info, knowledge, wisdom. As a society, we so often seem to get stuck at the info stage.
The ability to sort out facts from misinformation has always been in short supply. I'm not sure it makes much difference whether people get their misinformation from the neighbor next door or from the web. The vast majority will always choose to remain misinformed, even when the facts are available to them.
So much information, and so little time. You still need a good education to sift through it all and the computer is not the only answer for that!
There was a pretty good book a few years ago called Information Overload about how just the normal stuff we see everyday leads up to throw our hands up and walk away. Real info or fake, there is a lot of stuff out there.
Hi Francis,
Yes, and we have to be picky about our sources. Some may have false information.
I have a blogger friend from Chicago too, Patricia and she's extending an invitation for all bloggers especially those from Chicago to meet with her. Her blog is http://subjectivesoup.blogspot.com/
I would like very to go, but geographical distance wouldn't allow me to. I hope you guys out there would be able to do so.
Good luck.
I wholeheartedly agree Francis. I've fallen prey to to agnotology myself . . . many times; however, when I do, I seem to get out of it and really learn something valuable. This is why I hate politics so much and will never adhere to a political party. As soon as you proclaim yourself republican, democrat or whatever--you have automatically become biased. I used to call myself a libertarian, but I see now it is equally flawed.
Here's to free thinking and real wisdom:)
@Dave I hadn't thought of it in that way, but it makes a lot of sense.
@Catana I agree ... I guess it's more a question of degree. There's so much more misinformation for people to consume now :).
@Lorenzo Right, the computer is just a tool, we still have to do the work of finding out what's fact vs. fiction.
@Descartes There is good and bad, as the article points out. When you have so much, using a good filter becomes that much more important. For the most part, however, I think people use the filter of wanting more of the same information they already have, so they just feed the cycle.
@Jena I'll check out Patricia's blog ... it would definitely be easy to meet up with folks here in Chicago.
@Bobby I have to say that I'm tending toward that attitude too. Falling lockstep behind any party seems foolish, and I'm all about free thinking.
There's more of a need than ever for a healthy public skepticism...
I totally agree Francis. There is so much misinformation out there now on the internet, and television...the reason why you can only use peer reviewed journals for research in University and not the net and also the reason why you shouldn't take what you see as fact when watching TV. And as Lorenzo says You still need a good education to sift through it all and I also have to agree with Catana who says The vast majority will always choose to remain misinformed
~JD
Hi JD, I think it's definitely a two-sided problem. Those who want to manipulate public opinion by flooding the 'Net with misinformation, but also the public looking for information that only confirms what they currently believe.
this is such a great topic. the independent investigation of truth is really important in today's world.....
oops,didn't leave the right url for my name....on last post
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