“These narratives are reaching audiences inclined to believe them,” said Renee DiResta, a disinformation researcher at the Stanford Internet Observatory, “and so a significant concern remains around whether the losing side will accept the legitimacy of the outcome.”
Just walk away, counsels Nina Jankowicz, a disinformation analyst at the Wilson Center, a nonpartisan think tank: “I would recommend some ‘informational distancing’ — walk away from your device for a little while and if that information is still bugging you in a few minutes, go and do some lateral reading. Figure out if anyone else is reporting what you’ve seen, and look at those official sources to see if they corroborate what you’ve just read or watched.”
—Davey Alba, tech reporter, “California Today,” NYTimes, Nov. 16, 2020. Image: Jack Durham, Mad River Union
Comment: Better, bury your devices in the back yard.
NOTE: JCOM 2000 – Media Smarts: Making Sense of the Information Age is a media literacy course created and taught by Professors Brenda Cooper and Ted Pease at Utah State University from ~1997-2013.
November’s Senior News is delicious. Check out “Especially Now, Food Is Family.”
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“I don’t think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.” —Tom Stoppard
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