Since last week’s harrowing attack in Southport, social media has, unsurprisingly, been awash with ‘facts’ about the identity, race, religion and motivation of the alleged attackers as people try to make sense of the horrific murder of the three girls.
Unfortunately, almost all of these ‘facts’ were completely and utterly false.
But what is the power of Facebook, X, Tiktok and many other platforms, which are used by billions every day, and these lies have spread like wildfire.
And since these hugely influential social channels are barely regulated and take almost no responsibility for the content they post, the fact that the information is completely incorrect doesn’t matter at all.
In fact, because social media algorithms reward extreme viewpoints that reinforce people’s prejudices and fears, fake news is actually rewarded.
That’s a scary thought. The more extreme the information, the further it will spread, regardless of whether there is any grain of truth in it.
Not only that, but because the algorithms are so sophisticated and highly aligned, they know exactly how to keep you scrolling, serving you more and more content that reinforces your beliefs.
So soon all you see is the same news and the same extreme commentators with no counterbalance or alternative point of view, creating a dangerous echo chamber.
At that point, it’s not surprising that people become convinced that the reality of social media is the real reality.
Remember that social media algorithms are designed for one reason and one reason only, to keep you there. If it’s with fake news, so be it.
Truth is ultimately irrelevant when it comes to social media. Bosses don’t care and don’t take responsibility. When they print money, without fear of retribution, why would they?
Just imagine for a moment if a regulated newspaper, website, TV or radio station published some of the dangerous lies and propaganda floating around social media this past week.
The regulatory bodies would sanction us, the other traditional media would keep us on the pole, and the advertisers would boycott us. We would be done. And rightfully so.
Everyday journalists across the country come to work with the goal of finding information, checking facts, ensuring their accuracy and then publishing them.
Whichever newspaper or website you choose, if they are professional and regulated by IPSO, you know that every effort will be made to verify the accuracy of the information published. We are journalists and our job is to bring you news.
If we do something wrong, we bear the responsibility, as it should be.
There are people trying to convince you that the ‘MSM’ is the enemy and that they are the source of the ‘real truth’.
They lie, but social media has given them the perfect platform to spread those lies far and wide.
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: HIS Education