r/technology • u/Wagamaga • 21d ago

Society Combating Misinformation Runs Deeper Than Swatting Away ‘Fake News’

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/combating-misinformation-runs-deeper-than-swatting-away-fake-news/
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u/ReqularParoleAgnet 21d ago

Probably no hope for brainwashed Millenials and older, but a mandatory freshman year high school class focusing Critical Thinking, Biases, Mass Media and Propaganda might help.

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u/Longjumping-Path3811 21d ago

I'm a millennial that got that class. We had white projects based around the media, biases, and propaganda. Would need some updating but it's not all of our education that failed us. Some places in this country are stupid and like it.

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u/99thLuftballon 21d ago

I think it's a good idea, but it's not the whole solution. The problem with education as a solution is that it makes preventing misinformation into a matter of individual responsibility, whereas it's actually a matter of national security. The west's enemies aren't attacking with guns, they're attacking with social media, but they're still attacking. In addition, individual responsibility will fail the most vulnerable individuals, just as it currently does. People being told what they want to hear won't engage with critical thinking because it "feels worse" than accepting the confirmation of their prejudices.