Open Thread: Rumor Mills, Fear-Fighting And Smears Wiping Edition
Submitted by: Open Thread on Thu, 06/12/2008 - 06:01
Anyone who recognizes the logo above already has an idea about how to debunk rumors, urban legends and claims of internet spam-bots that shill untold millions and lies by the dozen.
Hat-tip slinkerwink.
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Anyone who recognizes the logo above already has an idea about how to debunk rumors, urban legends and claims of internet spam-bots that shill untold millions and lies by the dozen.
Anyone not familiar with it should right-click the image and open the site it points to -- Snopes.com -- in another tab, and get familiar with it.
During this election season, in particular, that site will come in handy.
Another site that will come in handy is this one:
Hat-tip slinkerwink.
The quote on the site's logo is well worth citing again, in quote format:
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"What you won't hear from this campaign or this party is the kind of politics that uses religion as a wedge, and patriotism as a bludgeon -- that sees our opponents not as competitors to challenge, but enemies to demonize. Because we may call ourselves Democrats and Republicans, but we are Americans first. We are always Americans first." -- Barack Obama, June 3, 2008
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The time where the politics of fear and smear went unaddressed and received a free ride by virtue of not being directly met and challenged has passed.
Be informed. Reject rumor and innuendo, and confront smear tactics and the politics of fear and hate head-on.
It's time to let America be America again, and to avoid the implications of doom and apocalypse that blind us toward the true nature of the rough beast that slouches forward once more during the campaign cycle, waiting to be born.
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Declining to state
a preference, seems like once again there is room for a non-partisan "fact-check". 'Specially since the original "FactCheck.org" went off the rails back in the SS debate in '04. Not just campaign smears mind you, but errors of omission and commission by media outlets.
All it takes is time and money. :-)
Time and money usually is a combo that leads toward
the path of partisanship, esp. through "sins of omission" and such.
:)
...do you have a short list of sites that can be used/referenced, either individually or together, that can help establish "closer to reality" facts?
They'd certainly be useful.
List
Hard to come up with a kind of "canonical list" because the subject matter is so varied. Like the "China-Cuba oil connection" story the Reeps are pushing. Took two good McClatchy reporters to research and write a near-bulletproof debunk, and that from an organization with a hugely deep data reach.
Guess it comes down - as usual - to backtracking until you reach a primary source if possible, but no "lower" than a secondary trusted source.
And none of this Rovian circle back
echo chamber of "verified by two sources" bs.
GOP
Steven Thomma/McClatchy: GOP chief vows to go after Obama's relationships
Heh -- no surprise there, other than the blatant
announcement of it.
Must be an attempt to rally the troops.