“Believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see,” is a quote that has been attributed to a number of thought leaders over time; Ben Franklin, Mark Twain and even Edgar Allen Poe.  What would they say if they were here with us today?

I find it quite amazing - and simultaneously distressing - that the same technology that puts practically all the world’s knowledge at our fingertips also gives us social media which has made us perhaps the least intelligent population to occupy the earth in generations.

Take the meme for example, widely circulated recently, that purports to compare sea levels at the famous Plymouth Rock today to those of 1620. The obvious failure in this meme is it’s just one image - there is no photo from 1620 to compare it to.

Put logic aside. Through the magic of Google search anyone can determine in about 60 seconds that most historians find scant evidence that the rock we honor today as Plymouth Rock is the same rock our ancestors remarked about 400 years ago. The rock in the photo was first identified more than 100 years after the Mayflower voyage. It has been moved several times - at one point it lived in a museum miles away - before being placed in its present location in 1921. Furthermore, the tidal levels at the rock’s present location rise approximately 10 feet so even the time of day changes the water level significantly. It’s become fashionable today to poke at historians, academics, teachers and scientists with these “see, you’re wrong” memes.

The point of this writing is not to discuss the historical relevance of Plymouth Rock or the postings of climate and/or science deniers. I’m writing about disinformation. The deliberate publication and distribution of false information, masquerading as facts, carefully calculated to shape public opinion and actions.

I find myself asking nearly every day, why would otherwise intelligent and responsible adults fabricate and disseminate false information? And why do so many otherwise intelligent and responsible adults believe it, embrace it, and allow it to shape their beliefs and actions?

Disinformation is propaganda and propaganda isn’t new. Most of us associate it with the Soviet Union or Nazi Germany. There’s clearly a lot of world-class propaganda happening today between Russia and the Ukraine. Some even point the finger at our own government. But you don’t have to go that far. Propaganda is alive and well and at your fingertips. 

Congressman Charles Brownson is believed to have coined the phrase, “never argue with a man who buys ink by the barrel.” Today the internet is bursting with a new generation of neo-journalistic muckrakers who buy electrons by the terabyte. How many you ask? Tumblr alone hosts more than 518 million blogs.

Disinformation is an epidemic. False facts – I can’t believe I just used those two words together – get tweeted and retweeted so much that the original source of the conspiracy is lost, and the disinformation takes on the credibility of all the people that have touched it along the way. Unwittingly perpetuating lies. And it doesn’t take long for disinformation to make its way into collective consciousness. Think back to widely circulated images on social media after the earthquake in Turkey showing a nuclear power plant explosion (didn’t happen), or the story of the “ghost of the Ukraine” – the mysterious Ukrainian fighter pilot who reportedly destroyed 40 Russian jets single-handedly (he doesn’t exist), or the recent deep fake video of President Biden declaring a military draft (didn’t happen). 

With so much wrong information floating around, the natural reaction of any sane person would be to not believe anything. Unfortunately, we’re not all sane (my humble opinion) and the evidence would say we are consuming more and more disinformation every day with little apparent concern. 

So, what do we do about it?  

For my journalist colleagues, I ask that you think about your godfather Edgar R. Murrow. He’d likely tell you to search for the truth, double check your sources, don’t run with a story you don’t absolutely know is true, and don’t propagate rumors. 

For the rest of you intelligent and responsible adults, be skeptical – be very skeptical. It is reasonable to believe that much of what you read on the internet today is at least distorted if not dead wrong. Be extra suspicious as we approach this next election season. 

The real risk of disinformation is not that we believe things that are untrue, it’s that we begin to not believe things that are true. Maybe that’s just what the propagandists want anyway.

Mark Twain also said, “get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please.” I think I’d subscribe to his blog.

RTH