Main Ideas--Accurate News

Goal: Summarize the main ideas that are needed for getting accurate news.

Accurate News

  1. News: Reported information about recent events, developments, or issues that are considered significant, relevant, or of public interest.

  2. Rationale for Being Current with the News: Make better decisions, discover opportunities, increase safety, learn about events to attend, learn things, and so on. However, excessive news focus can be emotionally draining and can consume too much time.

  3. Accurate News: News that presents a fair and accurate view of reality (AVR) because it is based on evidence and ethical reporting.

  4. Accurate View of Reality (AVR): Having an understanding, typically of a topic, that describes how things really are because it aligns with evidence, reasoning, and probability.

  5. Evidence Evidence is information from reliable methods (e.g., observation, measurement, calculations, experiments, models, and so on) that increases certainty about a claim.

How to Get Accurate News

  1. Get your news from multiple reliable and independent sources and then triangulate (cross-check) between them. Skim much of this to maximize your effectiveness. Include sources from various political leanings.

  2. Primary Sources: When possible, go directly to the source of information (e.g., government reports, scientific studies, official statements).

  3. Avoids sources that have a history of inaccurate information or bias.

  4. Use fact-checking organizations (e.g., Snopes, PolitiFact, FactCheck.org) to check the accuracy of claims.

Reliable Sources of News

  1. Reliable News Source: A reliable news source meets the following three criteria:

    1. Highest probability of presenting an Accurate View of Reality (AVR).
    2. Commitment to journalistic ethics, factual accuracy, and transparency.
    3. Minimal bias.

  2. Journalistic Ethics: Ethical journalists prioritize truth and accuracy, verifying information and correcting errors. They strive for impartiality, minimizing bias and distinguishing news from opinion. Transparency is paramount, disclosing sources and conflicts. They respect privacy and avoid causing unnecessary harm. Accountable to the public, they inform and hold power responsible. In the digital age, ethical journalists combat misinformation and use social media responsibly.

  3. Here are several ways to identify reliable sources of news.

    1. Use Ad Fontes Media (AFM).
    2. Ask experts in reliable news who they recommend.
    3. Conduct your own analysis; this requires an extensive skill set.
    4. Get a list of reliable sources: e.g., AP, NYT, WSJ, BBC, Reuters, NPR, ProPublica, The Economist, The Guardian, and so on.

  4. Avoid unreliable sources of news

    1. Examples (left learning): Occupy Democrats, The Palmer Report, Daily Kos, Addicting Info, Raw Story
    2. Examples (right leaning): Gateway Pundit, Newsmax, Breitbart News, One America News Network, The Epoch Times

Managing News Angst

  1. Acceptance: This skill refers to accepting reality as it is and then figuring out the best ways to deal with it so that you can be your best even when your present situation is difficult or extremely difficult. Note: this skill takes time and practice to develop.

Describing Information

Information

Information is the set of {facts, opinions, concepts, conclusions, data, methods and so on} about a topic.

Accurate information

Information that is correct, factual, and supported by reliable evidence.

Inaccurate information

Information that contains errors or is incorrect, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

Misinformation

False or misleading information shared without the intent to deceive, often due to misunderstanding or error.

Disinformation

False or misleading information that is deliberately created and spread to deceive people.

Bias

Bias is a systematic tendency to favor or oppose something, leading to judgments that are not fully based on objective facts or sound reasoning.

Social Misinformation

Propoganda

This is when a government, organization, or individual systematically disseminates false or misleading information to shape public perception, influence attitudes, guide actions, or promote a particular agenda.

Deception

Deception is the intentional attempt to provide an inaccurate view of reality for the deceiver’s benefit.

Manipulation (Unethical Persuasion):

Persuasion is attempting to get another actor (person, group, or entity) to believe something or do something. It become manipulation when the sender uses misinformation, coercion, or mind-tricks.

Fraud

Fraud is the intentional deception of a person or entity for financial or personal gain. It involves misrepresentation, concealment, or manipulation of facts to cause harm or gain an unfair advantage.

Con

A con is a deceptive scheme or trick designed to manipulate someone into trusting the con artist and ultimately losing money, property, or control. A con artist (short for “confidence artist”) is a person who gains the victim’s trust through deception, persuasion, or charm and then exploits them for personal gain.

Cult

A cult is a social group that is typically characterized by a distinct set of beliefs, intense devotion to a charismatic leader or ideology, and social structures that encourage isolation from outside influences, strong internal cohesion, and high levels of control over members’ behaviors, thoughts, and emotions.

Fact (Objective Fact):

:A statement whose truth or falsity is independent of anyone’s opinion because its truth value is determined by direct methods: observation, experiment, calculations, investigative journalism, methods used by skilled detectives such as DNA matching, and so on.

Opinion (Subjective Fact)

:A statement whose truth value depends on an actor’s values, beliefs, and so on. A subjective fact is true for one or more people, but not true for all people. Example: Apple pie is the best kind of pie.

Good Information (High Quality Information)

Information that meets 7 criteria: super-useful, true, accurate, complete, easy-to-figure-out, well organized, and justified.

Accurate View of Reality (AVR)

An AVR is the view that best represents the world as it is—one that aligns with the best available evidence and the conclusions drawn from it, in ways that are relatively independent of personal beliefs.

Inaccurate View of Reality (IVR)

An IVR is when an actor (person or group) has beliefs that are misleading or wrong about a topic.

Subjects or Methods

Information Literacy

This subject equips an actor (person or group) with the ability to find, evaluate, and use information effectively.

Critical Thinking

This subject equips an actor (person or group) with the abilities to (a) get an accurate view of reality, (b) figure out the best actions to take, and (c) justify their conclusions in all cases.

Research:

This subject equips an actor (person or group) with the abilities to seek out high-quality information and find it with the fewest drawbacks (time, effort, cost, hassles, and so on.)

Fact Checking

This subject equips an actor (person or group) with the abilities to figure out the degree to which information represents an accurate view of reality and communicates this uncertainty.

Things to Watch Out For

Core Nomenclature

Skepticism

This is the process of carefully examining beliefs and the reasons why these beliefs should be accepted for the purpose of getting accurate information.

: Evidence is information from reliable methods (e.g., observation, measurement, calculations, experiments, and models) that increases certainty about a claim.