Stealing (copying) directly from Science News: Why some chaos-seekers just want to watch the world burn This article is an interview with political scientist Kevin Arceneaux of the research university Sciences Po in Paris, France. In it, he and the author Sujata Gupta discuss this very relevant aspect of human behavior. Arceneaux helps us understand … [Read more…]
Just finished reading I’m Running Out of Ways to Explain How Bad This Is What’s happening in America today is something darker than a misinformation crisis. (gift link) and realize now that there is a brain eating fungus out there that has manifested itself in key spore producers like MTG and Loomer et al. At … [Read more…]
In the Atlantic is an essay covering the confusion surrounding the pandemic, it is well worth the time to read: Why the Coronavirus Is So Confusing A guide to making sense of a problem that is now too big for any one person to fully comprehend Story by Ed Yong April 29. 2020 And the … [Read more…]
The Guardian published the contents of a speech by Cohen: In a speech last night at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen attacked Facebook and other social media platforms for enabling the proliferation of hate speech and misinformation. The speech was striking in its sincerity – Baron Cohen appeared as … [Read more…]
View From the Valley Telecom Internet Tech Leaders Dismayed by Weaponization of Social MediaBy Tekla S. Perry Posted 14 Nov 2017 | 15:00 GMT IEEE SPECTRUM The tech industry can’t hide from the information war, particularly when its own creations are being weaponized. That was the consensus of a panel at the Techonomy17 conference in … [Read more…]
From the Guardian – Wednesday 15 November 2017 The inventor of the world wide web remains an optimist but sees a ‘nasty wind’ blowing amid concerns over advertising, net neutrality and fake news Sir Tim Berners-Lee’s optimism about the future of the web is starting to wane in the face of a “nasty storm” of … [Read more…]
L.M. Slackens: The Yellow Press, showing William Randolph Hearst as a jester handing out newspapers, published by Keppler & Schwarzmann, October 12, 1910 ” In the long history of misinformation, the current outbreak of fake news has already secured a special place, with the president’s personal adviser, Kellyanne Conway, going so far as to invent … [Read more…]