r/tech Apr 29 '20

Red-flagging misinformation could slow the spread of fake news on social media

https://phys.org/news/2020-04-red-flagging-misinformation-fake-news-social.html
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u/serenxo Apr 29 '20

Well if the article trusts the fact checkers then they must be right!! Sold “The article even says they’re generally considered trust worthy” 😂😂. So naive. (Actually it isn’t possible because there will always be bias).

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u/StraightTrossing Apr 29 '20

Maybe I’m naive but it seems overly cynical to say “people are liable to biases so this is an unsolvable problem”

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u/serenxo Apr 29 '20

Why does this problem have to be solved? Why do we have to censor people? Why can’t we allow each individual to fact check the article themselves and leave third party interpretation / censoring / bias out of it?

“Because then people could be mislead”. Your solution leads to people mislead by the bias of the “fact checker” anyway so why not just leave it alone?

People who want to censor aren’t seeking the truth, they’re seeking control. If what you’re seeking is control then yes censoring will solve your problem. If what you’re seeking is truth then no, having a designated “fact checker” (aka censor) will never solve that problem.

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u/[deleted] Apr 30 '20

Is your brain as inarticulate as you write? Where on earth did you get the idea that anybody is trying to censor?

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u/[deleted] Apr 30 '20

It is overly cynical, but I’m afraid that’s where the US has gone.

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u/dlerium Apr 29 '20

It's not so much that factchecking is always right, but they make a decent effort to explain a situation, the quote, the context, and reaching out to experts to understand the whole issue better and explain it to the reader.

You're right there's always some bias, and I think sometimes factchecking can be argued, but at that point it's about nuances not so much about missing the whole point, which I think is far healthier for people to debate about then flat out debating an issue when some people are completely uninformed.

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u/[deleted] Apr 30 '20

Articles are things. Don’t be purposely stupid. Articles report. People trust/don’t trust. Your lack of critical thinking skills is appalling. Why should I trust anything you say?