Here's a presidential-sized example of our ongoing issues of critical thinking skills and evaluating sources. Read and comment. How can people avoid being susceptible to such fake news?
Your thoughtful response, due by 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 30, is worth 20 points.
Here's the link; if it doesn't work, please read below:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/business/media/trump-fake-news.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/business/media/trump-fake-news.html
10 Times Trump Spread Fake News
He has used
false claims to attack his political opponents, question the legitimacy
and loyalty of the Obama administration and other Democrats, and
undermine the news media, the federal government and other institutions
that many of his supporters do not trust.
The practice has paralleled his rise from reality TV star to holder of the nation’s highest elected office, according to an analysis of his social media activity.
When discussing some of his claims, Mr. Trump has cited as evidence articles posted through Breitbart News, manipulated YouTube videos and celebrity gossip publications like The National Enquirer.
Mr. Trump has also tweeted links from right-wing blogs like WND.com and TheRightScoop.com that often promote sensational conspiracy theories and contain little original reporting.
His sourcing highlights the bounty of misinformation accessible on the web and its power in a deeply divided America — especially when endorsed by someone of Mr. Trump’s influence and visibility.
He offered this explanation for his actions while discussing an altered YouTube video he had tweeted as part of an unsubstantiated claim that a protester at one of his rallies had ties to the Islamic State: “I don’t know what they made up; all I can do is play what’s there,” Mr. Trump said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“All I know is what’s on the internet.”
Below are examples from the last several years of Mr. Trump’s penchant for making fraudulent claims and backing them up with information gleaned from unsubstantiated sources.
The practice has paralleled his rise from reality TV star to holder of the nation’s highest elected office, according to an analysis of his social media activity.
When discussing some of his claims, Mr. Trump has cited as evidence articles posted through Breitbart News, manipulated YouTube videos and celebrity gossip publications like The National Enquirer.
Mr. Trump has also tweeted links from right-wing blogs like WND.com and TheRightScoop.com that often promote sensational conspiracy theories and contain little original reporting.
His sourcing highlights the bounty of misinformation accessible on the web and its power in a deeply divided America — especially when endorsed by someone of Mr. Trump’s influence and visibility.
He offered this explanation for his actions while discussing an altered YouTube video he had tweeted as part of an unsubstantiated claim that a protester at one of his rallies had ties to the Islamic State: “I don’t know what they made up; all I can do is play what’s there,” Mr. Trump said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“All I know is what’s on the internet.”
Below are examples from the last several years of Mr. Trump’s penchant for making fraudulent claims and backing them up with information gleaned from unsubstantiated sources.
-
The Affordable Care Act and ‘Death Panels’
ObamaCare does indeed ration care. Seniors are now restricted to “comfort care” instead of brain surgery. Repeal now! http://bit.ly/spcorH
9:13 AM - 28 Nov 2011
In November 2011, Mr. Trump proclaimed that the Affordable Care Act would “ration care,” linking to an article on TheRightScoop.com. The story cited an anonymous caller’s comments on a conservative radio talk show as proof the act established so-called death panels that would determine whether or not elderly patients received care.
The notion of death panels was deemed the “Lie of the Year” in 2009 by the fact-checking website Politifact, which traced its rise to comments made by Sarah Palin on Facebook. The additional claims in the story Mr. Trump shared were debunked by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Department of Health and Human Services, according to Snopes, another fact-checking website. - President Obama’s Holiday Message
What a convenient mistake: @BarackObama issued a statement for Kwanza but failed to issue one for Christmas. http://bit.ly/vUmvpM
Mr. Trump took to Twitter to share a story from TheGatewayPundit.com, a conservative blog, which falsely claimed that Mr. Obama had issued a statement for “the fake holiday” Kwanzaa but not for Christmas. (Mr. Obama’s Christian faith has been questioned by political opponents; some have sought to assail the legitimacy of his presidency by falsely claiming he is a Muslim.) After the political blog Talking Points Memo refuted the story, Mr. Trump shared it again on Twitter, starting his post with “I’m right, TPM is wrong.”
President Obama and his wife wished Americans a “merry Christmas” on Dec. 24, 2011, in a video address shared on Twitter, YouTube and the White House website. Earlier that month, Mr. Obama said he hoped Americans had “the merriest of Christmases,” as his family lit the National Christmas Tree in front of the White House, -
Birtherism
An ‘extremely credible source’ has called my office and told me that @BarackObama’s birth certificate is a fraud.
In March 2011, Mr. Trump started raising questions about President Obama’s birthplace and birth certificate on television, on shows that included ABC’s “The View” and NBC’s “Today.” The notion had been debunked and pushed to the realm of conspiracy theorists after Mr. Obama released his short-form birth certificate from the Hawaii Department of Health in 2008.
Mr. Trump also promoted his claims through Twitter, citing “an ‘extremely credible source’” that called his office and allegedly told him the certificate was a fraud, as well as linking to posts on blogs like WND.com and FreedomOutpost.com. While Mr. Trump was roundly denounced for continuing to push the conspiracy theory, it solidified his connection to the largely white Republican base that was so instrumental in his election victory in November. -
Secret Oil Deal to Control Gas PricesMr. Trump has also made claims without supporting material of any kind. He once shared political views through a YouTube video series, “From The Desk Of Donald Trump,” sounding off on the Republican Party and Mr. Obama, but also on topics as varied as Andy Roddick’s talent and the state of the desk itself. (“Many people have been asking about my desk and the fact that I have so many papers on my desk,” it began.) He tweeted links to the posts with the hashtag #trumpvlog throughout 2011 and 2012.
In April 2012, Mr. Trump posted a segment in which he said, “I have no doubt in my mind that President Obama made a deal with the Saudis to flood the markets with oil before the election so he can at least keep it down a little bit.”
He added: “After the election it’s going to be a mess. You’re going to see numbers like you’ve never seen if he wins.” He repeated this allegation about a secret deal on CNBC in June of that year, which Fox published under the headline “Trump: Obama’s Secret Saudi Oil Deal to Win Re-election.” -
Linking Autism to Vaccinations
Autism rates through the roof–why doesn’t the Obama administration do something about doctor-inflicted autism. We lose nothing to try.
9:19 AM - 22 Oct 2012
Starting in 2012, Mr. Trump has repeatedly expressed his personal belief that autism is linked to childhood vaccinations, saying it in interviews, on Twitter, and even during a Republican debate.
On the show “Fox & Friends” in April 2012, Mr. Trump was asked about the rising number of children with autism diagnoses and said, “I have a theory and it’s a theory that some people believe in, and that’s the vaccinations.” Later in the segment, one host noted most doctors disagree and that studies do not show a link, which Mr. Trump acknowledged, adding, “It’s also very controversial to even say, but I couldn’t care less.” He said he had seen changes in children firsthand to support his belief.
Plenty of studies, including a recent one that involved almost 100,000 children, have shown there is no scientific evidence linking vaccinations to autism, and that there is no benefit to delaying vaccinations. Instead, children who are not vaccinated on the regular schedule can be at risk for infectious diseases for a longer period. One doctor told Scientific American that “misinformation on the internet often frightens parents away from following” the vaccination schedule recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the only one endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. In 2015, a measles outbreak in California, which started at Disneyland, was partly attributed to diseases spread by children who were not vaccinated.
In October 2012, Mr. Trump took to Twitter to ask why President Obama’s administration was not intervening. He then wrote in March 2014, “If I were President I would push for proper vaccinations but would not allow one time massive shots that a small child cannot take - AUTISM.” -
Questioning Unemployment Data
The underemployment being quoted as 14.9% is way low–real number could be 20%.
Think of it—20% of our country is essentially unemployed.
In November 2013, Mr. Trump, on Twitter, linked to a column from The New York Post headlined, “Census ‘faked’ 2012 election jobs report.” The story was quickly criticized by The Columbia Journalism Review for “turning a nugget of news into a blockbuster conspiracy exposé.” It noted that the column was largely premised on the misbehavior of a worker who left the Census Bureau in 2011, well before the election.
In December 2014, Mr. Trump tweeted a story from WND.com, a conspiracy-minded conservative site, with the headline “Donald Trump: Obama’s Jobless Figures ‘Phony.’ Economists agree.” The story cited comments Mr. Trump made on “Fox & Friends” alleging that the actual unemployment rate was almost 18 percent, an estimate supported by John Williams, an independent economist who has a newsletter called “Shadow Government Statistics.” It says says it “exposes and analyzes flaws in current U.S. government economic data and reporting.”
Mr. Williams, in the WND story, estimated November unemployment at 23 percent. Trump later repeated that figure during a campaign speech at Liberty University in January 2016, a number The Washington Post showed to be false. -
President Obama and the Boston Marathon Bombing
Obama’s $1T+ deficit budget expanded welfare & green cronyism & it cut domestic bomb prevention in half http://bit.ly/XRjmcP
Mr. Trump shared a link from TheRightScoop.com on Twitter, claiming the president’s budget “cut domestic bomb prevention in half.” The post relied on a story from The Daily Mail, which based its claim on an estimate from a former official at the Department of Homeland Security who resigned in 2005.
Separately, Mr. Trump tweeted, “Is the Boston killer eligible for Obama Care to bring him back to health?” He went on to circulate a post based entirely on that tweet from Newsbusters.org, a blog from the Media Research Center, which states its goal as “documenting, exposing and neutralizing liberal media bias.” Outside of the fact that federal law requires any patient requiring emergency treatment to be treated regardless of insurance status or ability to pay, the attack occurred in Massachusetts, where the health insurance program under Mitt Romney served as a model for the Affordable Care Act. -
Ted Cruz’s FatherMr. Trump made comments in a Fox News interview last May accusing Senator Ted Cruz’s father of associating with Lee Harvey Oswald shortly before the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
Mr. Trump’s remarks — made on the day of the Republican primary in Indiana — came after The National Enquirer claimed it had photographic proof that Mr. Cruz’s father, Rafael Cruz, was “palling around” with Mr. Oswald before the shooting. Mr. Cruz’s campaign called that report error-filled and condemned Mr. Trump for campaigning “on false tabloid garbage.”
The fact-checking website Politifact noted that “several historians of the period told us they’ve never seen Cruz’s name come up in connection with Oswald.” -
Protester Was Member of ISIS
USSS did an excellent job stopping the maniac running to the stage. He has ties to ISIS. Should be in jail! https://amp.twimg.com/v/977860d3-6b1b-4a5f-a81e-67baa6e2e3b1 …?ssr=true
Mr. Trump claimed at a rally last year that a man who charged him at another event was linked to the Islamic State, yet no government agency suggested the man was connected to ISIS or terrorism. He repeated the allegation in a tweet, linking to a video that claimed to show the man. It was overlaid with Arabic text and music and appeared to have been created as a hoax.
When asked on NBC’s “Meet the Press” about the lack of evidence tying the man to ISIS and the video hoax, Mr. Trump did not seem deterred.
“He was dragging a flag along the ground and he was playing a certain type of music and supposedly there was chatter about ISIS,” he responded. “What do I know about it?” -
Voter Fraud
In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally
After winning the presidential election but losing the popular vote, Mr. Trump took to Twitter to claim that he actually received more votes than Mrs. Clinton “if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.” The notion was popularized by Infowars, a website replete with conspiracy theories that include questioning the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
The overwhelming consensus from people who oversaw the general election in states around the country was that the amount of voter fraud in 2016 was next to none.
I believe that the only way we can stop people from being susceptible to the plague of fake news is to educate them. I have always been told that "not everything on the internet is true" and now more than ever those words of wisdom help me to decipher between legitimate news and fake news. Another way to educate people is to teach them how to decipher between real, legitimate websites and unreliable ones, a lesson I learned in school. If we taught people these things, they would have less of a chance of falling prey to any fake news.
ReplyDeleteI believe that it will be hard for society to avoid being susceptible to such fake news because unfortunately we have a leader that does that same exact thing. It doesn't make sense to elect an individual that falls short to the same "fake news" an un-educated voter stands for. Since announcing his presidency to become the Nations 45th president Donald Trump will do anything to make sure that his personal agenda is seen through even if it means adding to the corruption of society with "fake news. A "whatever it takes mind-set" not only the U.S but also the world could be in for a rough four year's. Lying to the people and then having his conniving cabinet members stand in front of the camera and give a sorry excuse is not what this nation needs. The same cancer that's corrupting our society is corrupting our president which causes me to believe his decisions in office will be some-what if not fully influenced by "fake news" with the help of cabinet members that will do and say whatever sounds good. The more we educate the less corruption we as a society will have to worry about. Electing a "leader" that stated "All I know is what's on the internet" tells any educated voter all they need to know to understand what direction this country is heading. Teach, understand, practice, learn, and the spread researched information/knowledge is what us millennials of this generation needs to continue doing.
ReplyDeleteI don't think there is a way to really stop people from believing whatever they see online. The only way would be for them to want to be educated and to think twice before really trusting what is being said. Doubting what the president is saying is not something that people will do because it is only natural for the people of our country to trust in what presidents are saying because presidents are usually looked up to by many. I think something very important in the process of eliminating this problem would be for people to stop being so caught up in their own feelings. They need to start coming to an agreement rather than point fingers at each other to try to make one opinion sound better than the other. As human beings this is probably impossible, but it is something that should always be considered. Fake news usually just plays upon peoples feelings. That is why it is so easy for people to create it.
ReplyDeleteNot being susceptible to fake news is a matter of choice and education. Someone has to make the conscious effort to double check their source multiple times. Even if their source is our president. As I said last time, we have to hold each other and ourselves accountable. We can choose to turn a blind eye to everything we read and stay ignorant to the truth or we can turn on the BS meter and start questioning what we read. I agree with Mary Yang that fake news plays on emotion. It’s probably why we will always have fake news and why people will always think it’s true. Education is another important part of not being susceptible. If the public chooses to make an effort to stop fake news, we need a way to make sure they know how to identify and discredit any fake news they may find while finding credible sources. People are always going to fall for fake news. We have to do our best as a society and as individuals to try and work together to discredit any news that isn’t from a credible source.
ReplyDeleteFake news will always influence people. Of course, authority has so much to do with the believe ability of the news. If someone as authoritative as the President posts something, people of course are going to believe him. He holds that key authority. But, people can start double checking sources. Make sure that the sources are reliable. But, also for people to start really looking at the actual story. Is is really possible. Instead of just seeing the person who posted the story. Although, with the technology of today, anyone can now make fake news. It is more important than ever to check the sources of news, and make sure the sources are reliable. Instead of people only using the facts (or the "alternative facts") that support there point of view, people need to simply accept the facts, and allow them to change there view point. People do not need to hold ties for the sake of holding them.
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ReplyDeleteElecting a President that falls right into the same problem we have with our society is not good for the U.S. President Trump makes sure that all of "his" personal agendas are taken care of before The People. We must continue to educate ourselves as individuals to know what is best for us and what is not. As a nation we cannot be blind by what the internet wants us know. A way to do that is to read in between the lines, also you don't want to read in between the lines too much. For Example, "Altered Facts", is just another way to say lies. Detecting these small things will help society as a whole.
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ReplyDeleteIf people don’t want to be influenced by fake news, they should verify information. We have available access to many sources. Mr. Trump claims that vaccinates cause the autism. If we want to make sure, we can find the medical articles and researches about this theory. Some scientists even indicate why people associate vaccinate as an origin of autism, because first disorder symptoms usually appear at the same age when children receive a vaccine.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Bronwyn Story that education helps people not believe in fake news. Athough we aren’t able to create full independence in recognition between true and false. It is not a next conspiracy theory. It happened plenty of times. For example, neutrinos are faster than the light, was the fresh news. Most people believed in a new theory. Later, scientist excluded this idea because of inaccurate researches. Who's right? We can’t decide.
How many times in the past politics manipulated the facts and fake information was even introduced at a school textbooks. Sometimes after years, we discovered history mistakes because new facts and proofs emerged.
In summary, we should read a lot and compare theory from other sources especially if they exclude each other. Only then, we find a balance between true and false basing on our intuition and knowledge.
I believe people are so vulnerable to believe everything they here is because they don't want to take the time out and actually find a reliable source. People are getting extremely lazy today. We should educate ourselves in finding reliable information and sources to go with the information; we shouldn't believe everything we hear or see. Now we have someone who's in a much higher position than us, who also believes everything's he hears; or he is in the mist of the fake news we hear or see.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately now that the fake news is not just on the internet, but coming from our president I can see the argument of those who fall into the trap of posting "fake news." I think that because he is the most important person in our media and our country in general it makes people extremely susceptible to falling for scams and traps in regards to fake news. I just don't think there really isn't any significant way to avoid falling for the fake stories, other than the obvious which would be to check the facts. Before we even click we need to check the web name. If that seems legidament enough check the story. Most stories are pretty blatantly false, especially because they are seemingly very extreme or very one sided. Lastly, compare it to other legidament ones that we've read and how does it compare.
ReplyDeleteI feel like president Trump never once consider who it will affect at all he just says how he feels and doesn't care who it hurts. I think he should educate himself more now than ever since he is the president. He should be an example and know more than anyone that fake news is something that people dont think can be true. He should not cast his feelings on social media about something that is not true. A the time of some of these videos he was not even president so,why even spread that and comment when its not even real? He needs to prove himself to be worthy of the highest position in the world. He needs to prove he can be trusted.
ReplyDeleteThe way our society is set up now, it's hard to not expect people to not fall prey to fake news. People are so lazy, and they tend to just go by what sounds right instead of getting the actual facts. With Donald Trump now as president, and the way our society is doesn't make it any better. The only way that people will avoid being suspectible to fake news is by educating themselves and making sure that whatever they are sharing or speaking about is reliable facts instead of lies. It starts with us as journalists we have to make sure that the information we put out is facts.
ReplyDeleteGiven the media today and everything that's been happening, I feel that the people yield to any type of news that agrees with ones point of view. Trump understands that about the society, even though there are people who can spot out "BS", a large part of our society blindly takes side with the fraudulent claims. And now that Trump is our President, he has even more credibility and people will blindly follow what he has to say without taken under consideration if such statements are indeed accurate.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is we have crazy attacks on our nation. We've had terrorist attacks as well as attacks from our own society. We almost expect to hear crazy news. So when we do, we're not surprised. President Trump does not help because when fake news appears, he makes sure everybody knows about it as well. If people would learn to figure out the difference between a legitimate sources and fake ones, that would solve a lot of problems. Also, we should fact check everything. If we see something about fake news pop up, we should do research on it to decide if it is real or fake news. Donald Trump should get a better BS meter or try to stop getting a reaction out of everybody. However, people will still choose to believe what they want too.
ReplyDeleteFake news is so common in today's society that it's just an accepted fact that a large majority of "news" is actually "fake news" to lure readers in and discredit a company and or person. I think that this has to be changed, and people should know if they are actually getting correct news, or are being fed false information for someone else's benefit. I think that the best way and most obvious way to reduce the amount of fake news one reads is to pick a historically credible source. Don't just pick a news station that clearly leans left or right and is going to be blinding by that bias, but pick a source that just presents the facts and doesn't try to sway ones opinion one way or the other. During this past election I have witnessed just how much fake news there really is, and it's honestly pretty scary. This wasn't from one side, republicans or democrat, but from both sides using social media and news sources to spew their hate for the other candidate. Picking a good source is the most obvious fix, but I think that a "fake news" penalty may be helpful to test out and penalize people if the facts they report are clearly inaccurate.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite impossible to avoid being influenced by fake news especially when it is a presidential sized news. Because I believe media is literally only thing we people can rely on to know anything going on in politics.
ReplyDeleteI have never thought of doubting the information that is being broadcasted on the TV. I believe this is how much people rely on the media and that may be a problem.
However, with knowing that, I think there is less people who acknowledge that fact. That is why, I agree that we need better education about media.
But I still believe that what more important is, people who spread the information should know how it affects people, and they always have to try to broadcast truth.
There is another way we people can avoid being affected by the fake news. By saying double check, we should not only believe one news, if you see a news you might doubt, wait for another similar news to come up and determine if that news is true. That is something we can do.
It seems that no matter how hard people try to find the right news out of the wrong news, there's still one person who will be influenced by the wrong news. Because we rely on media so heavily, it's hard to get the whole world on one side and help all know what is what. In order to avoid the fake and wrong news, people must check the site to make sure its an official cited website (org., gov., edu., etc.), and even checking the references in the articles. We can't help that not everyone follows the same views or media sites. However, we can try and help everyone realize what is a credible source and what is not.
ReplyDeleteThe truly best way to be able to avoid fake news is to teach people how to only trust official news sources. Nobody believes tabloids are actual news, the same needs to go for unofficial news articles, especially ones that are obviously fake (i.e the Onion) that some officials seem to believe are real articles.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately fake news has always been a problem in our society. People are going to try to bolster their own ideas through the media. It is important to realize that this is a problem, and will continue to be a problem. To make sure you are receiving legitimate media you need to check your sources and use credible news outlets. Too often people today latch on to whatever they see first. With the influx of information and the number of distractions brought on by technology of recent years this can be dangerous. Tabloids and click-bait articles have become so prevalent that mainstream media sources have used their false and exaggerated information in their own stories. We all need to to take a little bit more time with the news and not form our opinions off a single news story for you need to know where this information is truly coming from.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the only way to stir away from fake news is to be educated. Being able to see the difference between credible and non-credible information takes critical thinking skills and knowledge about the fake news phenomenon. Unfortunately, you cannot have or know either without the right education and everyone does not have that privilege. Another point is that people will believe whatever fits their own personal views. Trump believed all these allegations from these non-credible sites because he had already believed in what they were publishing. And it also has to do with the fact that there are some people that simply believe everything on the internet. There are people that take in everything they read regardless if it is a Youtube video, a Facebook post, or a tweet. They see these social medias as liable sources like some would view CNN or Fox News. I feel as if it is impossible to prevent everyone from taking in fake news.
ReplyDeleteFake news is everywhere we go. It's constantly up in our faces and that's the problem. It's easy and unfortunately, people love easy. Digging through the trash and doing research is hard and time consuming. We want answers immediately and that's exactly what fake news gives us. Can that be changed? That's the big question. In my opinion, it seems to be heading in the opposite direction of changing. As advancements are made, we become more spoiled and lazy. We become desensitized to what our eyes see. Meaning we may read news, but we don't take the time to analyze it. As long as this is happening, fake news will continue to grow.
ReplyDeleteIt is inevitable to avoid "fake news" with all the social media sites such as facebook and twitter, both of which are bad about spreading this fake news. And we as readers have become susceptible to these fake stories. Many of us are also guilty of helping to spread these fake stories. But a simple way to sift through these false news stories is by fact checking. It is very important for journalists and news reporters to fact check a story before they publish it. Without doing this all their credibility comes into question and readers begin to distrust stories that are published by these journalists and reporters. The best way to rule out any questioning, distrust or inaccuracy is to just check the sources and facts that are given.
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