I have been working on the room for debate articles. Many of these articles are thought provoking and interesting. My favorite article to write about however was How to Stop the Spread of Fake News. This article, as the name suggests, posed the question of how the spread fake news can be stopped.
The arguments where rather interesting. The arguments that stood out the most where by Annemarie Dooling and Nicholas Gavin. Dooling believes that the issue can be solved by algorithms. Gavin, on other hand, believes that the issue is one of user incompetence and their willingness to believe, and share, anything they read, not stoping to think about what they are sharing.
Overall, this debate sparks an interesting conversation of whether the spread of fake news is on users or companies. I believe that people should not be so quick to share what they read on the internet. There should be personal responsibility, as well as corporate responsibility, in checking the credibility of things posted on the social media and news sites. Of course, this whole issue brings about the question of censorship and freedom of speech. It's a lot to think about and consider. I would like to hear some other peoples views on this debate.
--Brandon Schmidt
The arguments where rather interesting. The arguments that stood out the most where by Annemarie Dooling and Nicholas Gavin. Dooling believes that the issue can be solved by algorithms. Gavin, on other hand, believes that the issue is one of user incompetence and their willingness to believe, and share, anything they read, not stoping to think about what they are sharing.
Overall, this debate sparks an interesting conversation of whether the spread of fake news is on users or companies. I believe that people should not be so quick to share what they read on the internet. There should be personal responsibility, as well as corporate responsibility, in checking the credibility of things posted on the social media and news sites. Of course, this whole issue brings about the question of censorship and freedom of speech. It's a lot to think about and consider. I would like to hear some other peoples views on this debate.
--Brandon Schmidt
Is it censorship if we check ourselves? No. We have a personal responsibility for the words we write, the words we speak, and the stories we repeat.
ReplyDeleteFreedom doesn't mean we lose our minds and say whatever our round heads come up with. Freedom is a responsibility, and it has to be protected -- not only by the state, but by the individual.
This controversy was fascinating for me as well, as the American public seems divided in deciding who should be held most accountable for the spread of fake news. I agree with you that it is both the reader's and corporation's responsibility to check how credible and factual a report is. The way the masses perceives the presidency and any issue is based on how and what kind of information they are fed. Therefore, it's even more imperative that this information is truthful. However, I don't believe that checking the credibility of a news source can be considered censorship, since both the company and individual is only ensuring the validity of a statement, rather than inhibit on freedom of speech. People should be allowed to say what they want, but not without some kind of rationality. I did, however, enjoy reading your insight onto this issue and what kinds of implications it has on censorship and freedom of speech though!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughtful response!
ReplyDelete