By Janice M. Barlow
WITH THE APPROACH of the election, the inundation of lies on both sides to destroy the opponent is nothing new. But because it can be done on social media, the lies can spread like wildfire. And sites such as Facebook can selectively choose which videos, ads, memes, articles, posts, and comments to delete and/or declare as false. We are all seeing this happen. Facebook can also place people on restrictions (known as Facebook Jail by those of us who have been there, myself included), or, if it deems our content outrageous enough, it can delete our accounts.
Discussing what should be banned from social media is a topic for another time. This piece is about lies that people promulgate regarding politicians in order to confirm their own biases, otherwise known as “confirmation bias”. Those of you who watched my first podcast back in July, heard me speak about confirmation bias. But I will define it here, because you will be hearing this term more often in the future.
Confirmation bias is something that happens when you strongly want to believe something is true. So you search on search engines for links (mainly opinion pieces), and surround yourself with others who believe as you do, so that you feel justified, and even vindicated in your beliefs. It doesn’t matter if it turns out that you are wrong. The fact that you find an inkling of information, even though it is false, that supports your preconceived notions, confirms your biases.
Here’s an example: Sandy Hook was a hoax. You may have heard me talk about this lie, and I will be talking about it in the future. In fact, I wrote an article about it a couple of years ago. Alex Jones, the shock jock entertainer on the airwaves and podcasts, pushed the notion that Sandy Hook Elementary School was never even open the day that twenty seven people (including twenty students) were shot and killed. He said it was closed and abandoned. He said there was a training exercise held there and the people who were “killed” just had their names used, and are alive and well under aliases. He also said crisis actors were hired to make the entire chaotic scene more realistic.
Then…with pressure from his attorney and the attorneys of the parents of the dead children, Jones openly admitted that he did it for entertainment and shock value, and to show that Obama had an agenda for gun control.
Well, this didn’t go over well with sensible people. Those that had doubts about Sandy Hook being a hoax now firmly believed it was not. Those who knew it really happened were finally able to feel vindicated by Jones’ admission. But those who firmly believed it was a hoax still believe it.
They don’t care that Alex Jones has apologized for his lie. They think that he was forced to do so and that Jones actually still believes it’s a hoax. They belong to Facebook groups and websites that confirm their preconceived bias that Sandy Hook was a hoax.
That, my friends is confirmation bias.
Confirmation bias is happening in this election cycle with both candidates. Chances are, you dislike one of the candidates for president. You may not even like both of them. But it is no excuse to believe lies about either one of them if you are a Christian.
Let’s take a look at two recent examples going viral on social media.
First, Donald Trump‘s supposed comments two years ago about World War II:
“A new report details multiple instances of President Donald Trump making disparaging remarks about members of the U.S. military who have been captured or killed, including referring to the American war dead at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France in 2018 as “losers” and “suckers.”
Trump said Thursday that the story is “totally false.””
This was first reported in The Atlantic. As a fact finder, think of how you would consider this information:
- It allegedly came from four anonymous sources.
- It happened two years ago, but was never reported at the time.
- No one has a recording of Trump saying this.
- There are no corresponding Trump tweets from that time frame.
- No one is willing to come forward as a named individual and admit they heard him say this, unlike in other situations
- Michael Bolton, who was with Trump that day, did not hear him say this and he is no fan of Trump.
I’m not a fan of Trump either, but I am a fan of truth. If I was given that information about someone I didn’t know, I would highly doubt its accuracy.
The problem is, people are saying that the president must have said it because he often says and tweets horrible things, ergo, this statement is also true. Would that fly in a court of law?
Well first of all, evidence of past situations usually cannot be used to convict in a current situation. Secondly, this is not even circumstantial evidence. I can rightly say, “some people possibly heard some things”. Maybe. Maybe not.
No attorney would take that case. It’s anonymous people’s words against the president’s word. Kinda fishy there. And “let’s be clear”, (no pun intended), but if the same situation occurred with Barack Obama, who is no buddy of the military, I would still say the same thing.
“Just the facts, folks”. Where are they?
Lie number two: This one is against Joe Biden. There is a video going around showing a news anchor (of unknown origin) attempting to interview the Democratic nominee. Instead of answering the questions on a split screen, it shows him looking down, eyes apparently closed, with a snoring sound overlay.
Is that Joe Biden snoring, asleep at the wheel during a broadcast interview? No. It’s satire. It’s an attempt to degrade Joe Biden. I’m not voting for him. I’ll admit that right here, but this is downright stupid because people are sharing it and believing it’s true all over social media. It looks like an SNL skit to me, except that it’s really Joe. But it’s not really Joe snoring away.
I knew it was altered before I fact checked that it was altered. But fact checking is something that smart people should always do. It’s not hard. Search key words. “Joe Biden, asleep, interview”. You’d be amazed at how quickly credible news will pop up.
Of course, those who want to confirm their bias will only look for “in-credible” information, and continue to spread lies.
Where do you fit in? Are you a Christian who knows that God despises a lying tongue? (Proverbs 6:17), or are you putting Jesus in the backseat again so that you can continue to spread untruths and confirm things in your mind that are only fantasies?
I only seek truth, even if it’s what I don’t want to hear. Because anything else feeds into evil.
Janice Barlow is the Editor-In-Chief of National Candle. She is a true crime author of two books, and is awaiting publication of her first novel, “The Last Bloodline” due out at the end of September. She is currently working on another non-fiction book. Janice lives in North Carolina with her husband and two greyhounds.
Janice has degrees in Economics & Finance, and Chemistry from the University of Michigan, and an MBA in Finance from The American College in Bryn Mawr, PA. She also is certified to teach ESOL science and English to Middle and High School students. She’s a retired Financial Advisor who teaches English to Chinese students online.
If you are interested in contributing to National Candle, please contact Janice at jmbarlowrays@gmail.com