1/x🧵
In my #skepcon2022 talk, I mentioned 6 types of false objectivity, as categorized by @jayrosen_nyu
@AustSkeptics @cbrskeptics
Here they are:
In my #skepcon2022 talk, I mentioned 6 types of false objectivity, as categorized by @jayrosen_nyu
@AustSkeptics @cbrskeptics
Here they are:
2/x
A. He Said/She Said
There is a public contradiction.
This contradiction will get into the media.
There is no serious effort to analyze the claims that are in conflict, even though the controversy is based on them.
A. He Said/She Said
There is a public contradiction.
This contradiction will get into the media.
There is no serious effort to analyze the claims that are in conflict, even though the controversy is based on them.
3/x
(The news is the controversy, not the information that is in dispute).
There is a way to verify the individual claims, but the reportage (for whatever reason) does not deal with that.
(The news is the controversy, not the information that is in dispute).
There is a way to verify the individual claims, but the reportage (for whatever reason) does not deal with that.
4/x
The journalist gets caught in the middle of opposing claims, which leads to polarization of readers/viewers/listeners.
Why is that a problem?
The journalist gets caught in the middle of opposing claims, which leads to polarization of readers/viewers/listeners.
Why is that a problem?
5/x
Because for the consumers of a given medium, a person with expertise appropriate to the topic and a person with an opinion are put on equal footing. There is a conflation of the right to one's own opinion with the false assumption that all opinions are equally valid.
Because for the consumers of a given medium, a person with expertise appropriate to the topic and a person with an opinion are put on equal footing. There is a conflation of the right to one's own opinion with the false assumption that all opinions are equally valid.
6/x
B. The view from nowhere
Presenting attention-grabbing information in such a way that key facts disappear.
This error is based on presenting factual facts without placing them in a broader context.
B. The view from nowhere
Presenting attention-grabbing information in such a way that key facts disappear.
This error is based on presenting factual facts without placing them in a broader context.
7/x
It leads the reader to create his or her own version of an event that may not correspond to reality at all, the actual course of events. This vagueness, leads to even more misinformation of the reader than
if they hadn't read the report at all.
It leads the reader to create his or her own version of an event that may not correspond to reality at all, the actual course of events. This vagueness, leads to even more misinformation of the reader than
if they hadn't read the report at all.
8/x
C. Regression to a phony mean
The assumption that the truth must lie somewhere in the middle between opposing views. Presenting that middle as the objective truth.
For some reason, the middle/average of opinions (not only) is associated with truth by journalists.
C. Regression to a phony mean
The assumption that the truth must lie somewhere in the middle between opposing views. Presenting that middle as the objective truth.
For some reason, the middle/average of opinions (not only) is associated with truth by journalists.
9/x
However, to present a middle ground between extremes of opinion is not presenting a supported claim.
According to Rosen, it is the impulse to seek refuge, not the search for truth
and this search for refuge is not the fulfillment of a journalist's duty.
However, to present a middle ground between extremes of opinion is not presenting a supported claim.
According to Rosen, it is the impulse to seek refuge, not the search for truth
and this search for refuge is not the fulfillment of a journalist's duty.
10/x
But the consequences of presenting half-truths can have a negative impact. Certain risks
are not taken seriously enough, or, on the contrary, risks are sought where none exist.
But the consequences of presenting half-truths can have a negative impact. Certain risks
are not taken seriously enough, or, on the contrary, risks are sought where none exist.
11/x
Innocent may suffer from false accusations and guilty persons may have an opinion on their side
of the public by this misrepresentation.
Innocent may suffer from false accusations and guilty persons may have an opinion on their side
of the public by this misrepresentation.
12/x
D. The quest for innocence
Pretending that the journalist does not have his own agenda, opinion, perspective and that he is reporting objectively.
But journalists are human too.
D. The quest for innocence
Pretending that the journalist does not have his own agenda, opinion, perspective and that he is reporting objectively.
But journalists are human too.
13/x
E. The sphere of deviance
Every medium/platform has a sphere of opinion that it presents and does not give space to the perspective of a person who is outside the sphere. The question is not how or what the opinion is based on, but whether it fits.
E. The sphere of deviance
Every medium/platform has a sphere of opinion that it presents and does not give space to the perspective of a person who is outside the sphere. The question is not how or what the opinion is based on, but whether it fits.
14/x
This is almost the opposite of the previous mistake. The sphere of deviance is the designation for
Venn diagram of the permissible topics, views, perspectives, and personalities presented by a given
media. Every medium, even the most sophisticated, has a sphere.
This is almost the opposite of the previous mistake. The sphere of deviance is the designation for
Venn diagram of the permissible topics, views, perspectives, and personalities presented by a given
media. Every medium, even the most sophisticated, has a sphere.
15/x
This sphere is only meaningful if
the dominant set of the Venn diagram is grounded information. It becomes meaningless when
the dominant set is a particular opinion that can only be confirmed.
This sphere is only meaningful if
the dominant set of the Venn diagram is grounded information. It becomes meaningless when
the dominant set is a particular opinion that can only be confirmed.
16/16
F. The Church of the Savvy
A presentation by a seasoned person who reassures the public that while they can't tell exactly what's going on, they’ve been talking to people in the inner circle and the whole thing is A-OK.
F. The Church of the Savvy
A presentation by a seasoned person who reassures the public that while they can't tell exactly what's going on, they’ve been talking to people in the inner circle and the whole thing is A-OK.
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