Information Filters in the Information Age
I often tell the youth that I work with, and their parents or adults that work alongside the youth in their congregations, that they need to develop good filters for the information that comes to their email accounts, Facebook feeds, text windows, newspapers, and TV ads. In an information age it is more important than ever to learn how to know how to spot, to borrow from the board game, “fact or crap.” How does one know what information sources can be trusted or given more trust than others? This article from CNN, a media outlet making money of reporting the news, is a good example of how discerning an eye and diligent citizenship must be in this information age.
Did Jefferson Really Say That? Why bogus quotations matter in gun debate.
by Nicole Saidi | Jan 11, 2013Duane Tigner, a commenter who said he teaches American government to high school students in Sanford, Michigan, described feeling a responsibility to educate young people about the need to develop a discerning eye about the information they come across. Tigner was one of the readers who mentioned that the quotation had been debunked. He suggests starting with a Google search, which often will quickly turn up information about a quotation.
“Many of these quotations are circulated and reposted on social media or appear in chain e-mails,” he said via e-mail. “Every time I see one of these bogus quotes, I call it out as fake.” click here to read more.