(INTERCEPT) — There is ample talk, particularly of late, about the threats posed by social media to democracy and political discourse. Yet one of the primary ways that democracy is degraded by platforms such and Facebook and Twitter is, for obvious reasons, typically ignored in such discussions: the way they are used by American journalists to endorse factually false claims that quickly spread and become viral, entrenched into narratives, and thus can never be adequately corrected.
The design of Twitter, where many political journalists spend their time, is in large part responsible for this damage. Its space constraints mean that tweeted headlines or tiny summaries of reporting are often assumed to be true with no critical analysis of their accuracy, and are easily spread. Claims from journalists that people want to believe are shared like wildfire, while less popular, subsequent corrections or nuanced debunking are easily ignored. Whatever one’s views are on the actual impact of Twitter Russian bots, surely the propensity of journalistic falsehoods to spread far and wide is at least as significant.
Just in the last week alone, there have been four major factually false claims that have gone viral because journalists on Twitter endorsed and spread them: three about the controversy involving Donna Brazile and the DNC, and one about documents and emails published by WikiLeaks during the 2016 campaign. It’s well worth examining them, both to document what the actual truth is as well as to understand how often and easily this online journalistic misleading occurs:
This article was chosen for republication based on the interest of our readers. Anti-Media republishes stories from a number of other independent news sources. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect Anti-Media editorial policy.
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Spiritual Evolution
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Given the incredible rise in popularity and sophistication of social media in recent years, we can see ourselves living at a time of enormous opportunity to use this tool in a way that can significantly accelerate the collective consciousness shift. What each of us can do to ensure we steer humanity towards a bright future rather than some other undesirable timeline, is to do our part by shifting our consciousness towards unity rather than separateness. By doing so we can transform our lives and our world for the better. Continue reading Experiencing a Collective Shift Through Personal Transformation→
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Health and Wellness
8 Inspiring Steps to Live a Healthier Life and Naturally Avoid Disease
Your health is one of the most important things that you can focus on throughout your life. Unfortunately, not everyone takes it very seriously and many people live much of their lives feeling lethargic and in full of pain. Despite the fact that food and medicine is more readily available than at any time in history, the quality is typically questionable at best. In a world filled with toxins and more ways than ever to avoid exercise, the biggest health question becomes not how to cure disease, but how to prevent it while living a productive, healthy life.
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Cannabis/Hemp Awareness
State Threatens to Kidnap Little Girl Because Parents Cure Her Seizures with CBD in a LEGAL State
Openhearted Rebel1 Comment
By Justin Gardner, The Free Thought Project, Thanks to Natural Blaze
“I would look outside my window just scared to death I would see a police officer and CPS here to take my kid.”
It’s a nightmare made entirely by the State. A little girl would be snatched away from caring parents for doing nothing more than healing their daughter’s debilitating condition with a plant extract. Continue reading State Threatens to Kidnap Little Girl Because Parents Cure Her Seizures with CBD in a LEGAL State→
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Inspiring a Revolution of Love, Compassion, and Wisdom