Where
do you learn things? How do you find out what’s happening?
Television?
Newspapers? Internet? Friends and family and watercooler gossip?
And,
most importantly, when do you decide to believe the hype?
We’ve
arrived in a dangerous place, if we’re being honest. A place where
fact and fiction often overlap, pushed on by personal beliefs
and desires. Often, simply because we want something to be true,
we accept word of something’s existence without an actual reason
to support its existence. And we navigate in the direction of
reports that deny things we want to believe are false. It’s not
fake news, it’s comfort news, taking in material that supports
what we want to believe.
Before
we wade too deeply into the waters, let’s step off into the realm
of Wikipedia.
How
often do you visit the Wikipedia site? If you’re like most people,
you know it exists, and more likely than not you’ve utilized it
on occasion for information. But… and I do believe most people
understand this… it is far, far from reliable.
Funny
thing about Wikipedia. It is an incredible resource. It can provide
details about things quickly, and often accurately. But it’s also
a source of all sorts of problems. People intentionally post incorrect
material. People access pages and update sections with jokes.
You use it at your own risk, and it is far from a credible reference.
But
again, you knew that. Right?
Good.
Why
do you trust a certain television station? A certain newspaper?
Do you recognize how their way of delivering information is often
a reflection of their influences? Ownership can create company
policy about what narratives are presented, particulars shared,
and even what is ignored or never spoken. Advertisers and revenue
will dictate coverage in quite similar fashion.
Why
do you believe the first reports of any story? In the rush to
be declared as-first-reported-by status, deep investigations and
realities are tossed to the side. Often as the scope widens and
available facts increase, the initial reports turn out to be nothing
more than a scratch of the surface.
This
not the same as Wikipedia. Then again, it is.
Not
because it’s wrong, but because this tarnished and incomplete.
And yet so many accept it without a second thought or a double-check.
If it turns out to be wrong… well, much like the reporter attempting
to scoop the accolades… it gets tossed to the side to be forgotten
as the next story comes along. Lather… rinse… repeat… without
responsibility or accountability.
Comfort
news. If I agree with it… true. If I don’t agree with it… la la
la, I can’t hear you.
I
get mad with others not because of their personal beliefs or opinions.
We all have things that we want to develop in a certain way, and
those paths at times are in conflict. In general, that’s actually
pretty healthy. It should—major stress on should—create
scenarios where we do more research, apply more thought, improve
our skills and approaches. In essence, finding answers and taking
action should come with questions and hurdles, as overcoming those
obstacles will assist in building upon a strong foundation.
Trouble
is… that’s not quick. Or easy. Or, sad to say, the way we want
to believe.
We
want right or wrong, and right will only be judged by what we
accept as being right.
There’s
an old joke in Hollywood about playing villains. The basic concept
is that you have to approach the part with the understanding that
villains never believe they are the villains. They believe they’re
the heroes, and are doing what’s right. For the audience, what
appears clearer is the full picture.
I
didn’t write this to create some attack on news our sources of
information. Instead, I wrote it because I really hope you’ll
take some time to think. Because if you’re only using one source…
and you don’t recognize the limitations of that source… you will
yourself be mistaken far more often than you care to think.