What's real in the world of fake news this week? Here's the most important stuff: The FaceApp app is all the rage, with everybody showing off photos of how they'll look when they're old. (I'm already old, so why bother?) However, the app itself is from a Russian developer, which has kicked off lots of … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending July 19, 2019
Fake News for the Week Ending July 12, 2019
Here's what's real in the world of fake news this week: Remember Seth Rich, the former Democratic National Committee staffer who was found murdered just before the Democratic National Convention in July, 2016? Remember all the crazy conspiracy theories advanced and spread by the right-wing media about how Hillary Clinton had him killed for various … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending July 12, 2019
Fake News for the Week Ending July 5, 2019
Happy Independence Day, everybody! Here's the fake news this week: It's starting. We're barely into the 2020 presidential campaign and already the fake garbage is flying. This week it was reported that Patrick Mauldin, a Trump campaign operative, has created a fake Joe Biden website (www.JoeBiden.info) that contains fairly negative coverage of the Democratic presidential … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending July 5, 2019
Fake News for the Week Ending June 28, 2019
There was lots of news about fake news this week, including the following: Google is putting together a new media literacy program to teach kids how to spot fake news. That's certainly not a bad thing. More information here, from TechCrunch. And here's a link to the program, dubbed "Be Internet Awesome." Scientists claim that … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending June 28, 2019
Fake News for the Week Ending June 21, 2019
Here's what's really happening in the world of fake news this week: No, kids are not growing horns because of cell phone use. It's not quite fake news, but it is a substantial misreading of the research and conflation of trends. Reason helps to make sense of it all. Pew Research reports that white evangelicals are more … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending June 21, 2019
The Rise of Anti-Intellectualism
It's not fake news per se, but it is relevant – my first political essay for Michael Smerconish's website: The Rise of Anti-Intellectualism. (And if you don't watch or listen to or follow Michael Smerconish, you should; he's one of the smartest and most honest guys on TV and radio today.)
Fake News for the Week Ending June 14, 2019
Here's what's happening in the world of fake news this week: Responding to reports that his own internal polling shows him trailing Joe Biden and other Democratic presidential candidates, and despite numerous other national polls showing the same results, President Trump called these polls -- his own campaign's polls, remember -- "fake polls." In his … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending June 14, 2019
Review of Fake News Book
Here's another great review of the Fake News book, from The Hub: Fake News is a short, concise book that describes what fake news is, why it is a problem, and how to avoid and combat it. With concrete examples from current events, readers learn tips and tricks to avoid all kinds of fake news, from outrageous lies to … Continue reading Review of Fake News Book
Fake News for the Week Ending June 7, 2019
What's up in fake news this week? Here are the highlights: More details are coming out about Russia's manipulation of fake news on Twitter during the 2016 presidential election. It was massive, and could have actually swung the election. They also knew what they were doing and were patient about it, waiting almost six months … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending June 7, 2019
Fake News for the Week Ending May 31, 2019
For the last day of the last week in May, here are some of the highlights of what's happening in the fake news world: More fallout from last week's fake video of Nancy Pelosi (slowed down to make her appear drunk). Experts say this sort of doctored footage could just be the tip of the … Continue reading Fake News for the Week Ending May 31, 2019
This Week in Fake News 