Facebook Journalism Project Battles 'Fake News' Problem

[wildkitten]

A fact is merely a fact. Truth is a determination made by an individual. Saying that some men are happy to get a divorce is a fact and also true for them. Saying that some men are sad to get a divorce is also a fact and true for those men, even though they are polar opposites. Truth isn't just facts, if it were, we would all agree on everything.

Problem is, as someone stated above, truth is being confused for perspective. Nothing about your example has anything to with "truth".

 

[anathema_forever]

I think what one side is trying to say is that absolute objectivity is a entirely theoretical concept. While conceptually absolute truth is real I would compare it to heisenberg's uncertainty principle as soon as humans apply their perspective, biological make up, backgrounds, education, goals to it, it contaminated. The truth used to mean the world was flat, the "truth" used to mean the sun revolved around the earth. Objective truth is an ideal maybe impossible to reach so I am a little disconcerted by people's belief in its absoluteness.

 

[steve4king]

I mistakenly re-posted a meme earlier this year, not realizing that the quote was never made by that person. After digging a little I corrected myself(after a couple people jumped on my bandwagon). Some of the false news we're seeing are far from perspective, they are blatant lies. We see a picture of someone talking and a caption underneath and the tendency is to believe those words came from that person.. out of context certainly, but still that person. Perhaps, similar to how some AVs tag links as verified, objects posted to FB could be submitted for verification. Similarly, known false "news" objects/references could be IDd and flagged with a little red exclamation mark.

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

I mistakenly re-posted a meme earlier this year

Wasn't it Abraham Lincoln that said, "Don't believe everything you read on the internet!"

 

[BadActor]

A month ago Kai Ryssdal (NPR Marketplace) was reporting on this story (or a similar facet of it). He ended the segment with:

"Also, you know what's helpful? Critical Thinking."

Nailed it.

Bingo!

 

[BadActor]

 

[hoofhearted]

Love this:
http://www.discovery.com/dscovrd/tech/town-rejects-solar-panels-that-would-suck-up-all-the-energy-from-the-sun/

People are smart enough to decide for themselves without Facebook's bias. With all of the mass media and all of their negative spin on our current president elect, middle America still elected him. The media exaggerated his history to the point of him being more evil than Hitler.

I am betting the only reason FB wants to do this is due to the fact that the election didn't turn out the way they wanted from their mostly liberal staff -- these tools gives them a better censorship arsenal and allows them to look altruistic.

All you purveyors of "truth", here is a question for you. Is Shrodinger's cat dead or alive?

 

[bigpinkdragon286]

Yes, Shrödinger's cat is either dead or alive. Whether we observe the state of the cat or not, Shrödinger's cat can not be both alive and dead at the same time. What's your point?

 

[therealduckofdeath]

I see the 4channers have been rallied en force... Gotta defend those fascist propaganda sources, boys!

 

[BadActor]

I see the 4channers have been rallied en force... Gotta defend those fascist propaganda sources, boys!

Up until now,, this has been a quite entertaining DISCUSSION about censorship, truth, critical thinking and so on. Please check your attitude at the door. I see no one else here being mean spirited.

 

[Virtual_Singularity]

The very term "fake news", started and became popularized as a desperate and childish, last gasp attempt by the establishment and the mainstream media that obediently supports it, to influence its dwindling audience and potential voters around the last couple months of the election and onward.

Wikileaks continues to have a profound impact on the political arena. Alternative news sites like RT, zerohedge, and others have as well. Rather than acting like adults and accepting we've every right to access the other side of a given story the MSM refuses to report, by looking to alternative media and making up our own minds... terms like "fake news" are conjured by those who lament the fact the MSM is no longer as powerful or viewed anywhere near as credible as they once were, and likely never will be ever again...

"Fake News!", they cry. Despite the fact none of the info released by wikileaks, none of what they've been calling "fake", has been denied or disproved by those it's been leveled against.

The parting shots by the outgoing administration toward the incoming, it's attempt to scapegoat Russia on just about any and everything; the report released by the DNI which reads like an unprofessional memo of unsubstantiated allegations and a lot of whining about how voters were able to make more informed decisions thanks to alternative media sources. It'd seem this tit for tat juvenile nonsense about "fake news" is nothing more than a lot of sour grapes by the principals of a corrupt establishment that has grown far too entrenched, and gotten used to getting away with far too much, for far too long.

And finally... Facebook... The above article states: "The question is whether or not it will work. Facebook doesn't have the best track record when it comes to supporting the media."

I'd disagree on this point 100%. Facebook ultimately is just another tool of the establishment. The very notion of Facebook battling the 'Fake News' problem is laughable, and indicates Facebook will do more to censor information that doesn't fit the narrative pushed by the Main Stream Media. This isn't about sensational pics and made up click-bait nonsense information anyone with common sense easily can debunk. It's about targeting and censoring the very kind of credible stories that give us the other side of the story which the MSM refuses to cover. Just with a more robust effort than before, is all, apparently.

 

[shrapnel_indie]

A fact is merely a fact. Truth is a determination made by an individual. Saying that some men are happy to get a divorce is a fact and also true for them. Saying that some men are sad to get a divorce is also a fact and true for those men, even though they are polar opposites. Truth isn't just facts, if it were, we would all agree on everything.

Problem is, as someone stated above, truth is being confused for perspective. Nothing about your example has anything to with "truth".

Well, there is absolute truths (and they can be VERY unpopular, but it doesn't change the facts of that truth, and there is relative truth (The one the absolute truth haters/unbelievers refuse to believe exists.)

Using out example. Absolute Truth. Both are getting divorced. Relative truth: One is happy about it, and the other isn't. The big difference here is, one is a completely irrefutable action happening and applies to all. (another example: the laws of physics. To fly I'd have to throw myself at the ground and miss... that isn't ever going to happen. Eventually we'd connect.) The other is based on personal feeling, convictions, views, or restrictions and may only have a more selective application. It's too easy sometimes to take relatives and translate them into absolutes, and vice-versa.

 

[ceh4702]

I consider all Network News to be fake. That is why I cut the cable. Simply by filtering news and only reporting on stories that support your agenda you are creating fake news. I wonder whether there are any people we can really call a journalist. Most of the news on the Internet is just a copy of someone else's work. Yahoo is full of fake news that they merely copied or repeated. I think it is all done by a robotic program to scrape news off of the Internet.

 

[ceh4702]

Facebook is not a news agency.

 

[falchard]

One thing I am amazed at is the ability to get completely different conclusions to the same data. Take for instance the minimum wage. The Department of labor determined here is a net overall negative impact for a period after it takes effect. The Obama Administration found no negative impacts based on the Department of Labors report.

 

[therealduckofdeath]

I see the 4channers have been rallied en force... Gotta defend those fascist propaganda sources, boys!

Up until now,, this has been a quite entertaining DISCUSSION about censorship, truth, critical thinking and so on. Please check your attitude at the door. I see no one else here being mean spirited.

Keep telling yourself that.

 

[realnoize]

Facebook is not a news agency.

I know. But the fact is that most people out there tend to get their news from what's being shared on Facebook (or other social media). And also tend to believe stuff that has been shared by their friends a lot more than anything that comes from proper news sources.

The heart of the problem is that most people usually tend to straight out believe anything that will back up their pre-conceived ideas without validating anything about it. And criticize anyone who disagree (often, it's more blatant insults than real criticism though).

We're not really different now than we were 500 years ago. We choose to believe in something and anyone who dare speak against what we believe, we just burn them. We simply believe anything that comfort us in what we've been told is true.

Are fake news problematic? Sure they are. But even more problematic are the people who believe anything they're told as long as it backs up anything they already believe. It's not because we want something to be true that it is.

 

[mrmez]

But you won't believe what happens next...

 

[falchard]

You won't believe what they look like now...