Wednesday, January 5, 2022

Social Media and Pavlov's dog

 I have to admit that social media fascinates me. The ability to communicate with people across the globe, it really does have a valid purpose. Alas, that valid purpose has degraded a lit over the last few years. People sharing poorly researched or slanted alleged "news" articles. Post memes that have no grounding in fact. And then in the same breath, many of these same folks get upset that the likes of Facebook and Twitter don't do a better job to prevent the spread of misinformation. All along, these folks don't grasp they are the ones with that power to begin with.


Anyone who follows me on my personal Facebook page, or on Twitter (@HandsomeRandall, by the way) realized quite quickly that I don't share a lot of links to news sites unless I vet them first. Or I trust the actual source of the information. I cringe when I see someone share links to Newsmax or Breitbart as if those agencies reported actual facts. if anything, they serve as public relations firms for conservative causes and voices. Happy tossing out what ever facts don't fit their narrative in order to achieve a Pavlov like response from their target audience. Alternet comes dangerously close to tossing aside the straight narrative for an editorial one with some of their articles. Unless the site has my full faith, I don't share the article, it's that simple. 

I get that in today's world, taking some time to do quick research as to the validity of an article is a tough ask. Most find it easier to just click the share button and go on their merry way. Especially if it fits that narrative, once again brings up back to Ivan Pavlov and his dogs. Instead of the bell which conditioned the dogs to expect to find food, now its news articles conditioned to affirm a person's beliefs. 

It is rather maddening to assume we are utterly powerless in stopping the spread of misinformation on social media, and that the social media companies alone are the ones to solve the issue. Which brings us to Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green. Shortly after the first of the year, Twitter permanently disabled her personal account. For the last year, maybe more, she'd been spreading misinformation regarding COVID. Social media companies like Twitter (and to a lesser extent Facebook, which seems generally disinterested in the idea) announced they were going to crack down on the spread of misinformation. The result was many accounts being restricted or shut down entirely. Instead of owning up to spreading falsehoods, Greene turned her focus on Twitter and cried that she was being censored. Not to be outdone, Lauren Boebert tweeted in defense of Greene, proclaiming that when Republicans regain control, social media outlets like Twitter would "pay" for their actions, causing many to believe that Boebert was advocating that all social media platforms be placed under government control, and that only government approved post could appear. A rather frightening concept indeed, but Boebert is a devout follower of Donald Trump and many times while in office, Trump expressed a desire to extend government control over the media, which included the ability to pull a license from any outlet that did not write favorably of him. So, it's not a wild notion that Boebert wasn't advocating violence, but full government control over social media. 

Had Greene used common sense and not re-tweeted misinformation, she'd still have her personal account. Instead, she opted for political gamesmanship. Sharing of misinformation gets people hurt, it could very well get them killed. Spreading misinformation regarding COVID, at a time where hospitals are having to delay surgeries, and essentially teeter on rationing care, is dangerous. You can't spread COVID misinformation and proclaim you care about the front-line workers in the hospitals without sounding like hypocrite. 

There have been many calls on Facebook and Twitter to stop the spread. It has reached the point where the CEO's of the companies had been called to testify before congress. And the sad fact is that we didn't have to get to that point. The grim fact as I stated before is that we have to gaze into the mirror and accept the fact that we played a role in the spread, the wide spread as it were, of misinformation. Getting upset at Facebook is not going to change that. Both social media and many of its users have played a role in the spread of misinformation. 

So this is the next step. It's 2022, a brand-new year. Time to adopt a new approach. Instead of blindly sharing a meme or a random post, so a quick study. And get out of your comfort zone. That means bypassing the usual websites with their slanted views. It means actually going to google and researching valid websites. Not that I mean this as a plug, like I did my Twitter handle, but I swear by Factcheck.org. They are non-partisan. They don't have a political axe to grind. And they back-up their articles with links, so that you are getting just the facts, man. 

This is the call to action, the call to change. Tired that a social media company isn't stopping the spread of misinformation, do something. Stop sharing memes and links just because it fits your narrative. Do some true honest research. And if the original post comes from a group that appears to have a political agenda, then don't share the post, it's as simple as that. The power is yours. Use it. All of this almost makes me miss the days where you got an annoying message from a friend asking if you could spare some animals for their farm in Farmville. Almost. 

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