My Report On Misinformation, an Un-Scientific Survey

I need to make one thing clear from the start…

Do not blame Chatbots or any AI for the kind of purposeful misinformation (fake news...yadda yadda yadda) that creates hate, sows distrust, divides us, and tragically (too often) leads to violence and death.??

PEOPLE.

People programmed the software.

People deploy it.?

People use it for evil and nefarious purposes.?

As the USA moves into another Presidential cycle, as global conflicts continue to ignite and flare, and as authoritarian governments beat down protesters, it will only get worse and worse.?

Once again, we have created or projected a use case that (for an Applied Tech that could do much good) is based on people's worst inclinations. Which, frankly, in many instances, is simply the intersection of lousy ideology and money.

To that end, I fielded (another of my totally unscientific yet ultimately insightful) LinkedIn surveys. My readers know all the caveats…in summary, not projectable…etc…etc…etc, but maybe?

As always, I kept the question simple and straightforward and the choices as well.?

“How Much Influence Do You Think Online Misinformation Has On Public Opinion and Decision-Making?”

• A Lot: 80%
• Somewhat: 15%
• Not Much: 4%?
• None At All: 1%

Bottom line? The highest aggregated top-line percentage I have ever seen of anything.?

These are head-for-the-hills numbers. Eighty percent of us are convinced that whatever or whomever we choose…our choice process will be hugely influenced by lies.

Let's look at the comments. As always, that's where we find the meat.?

• "We are generating more noise and misinformation than ever." —CQ
• "It's important to verify what we read online these days. …..not everyone has the necessary critical thinking skills to distinguish fact from fiction." —GA
• "It depends on what information we are calling 'misinformation'….what happened to freedom of thought?" —JM
• "No one should rely on any information without researching on your own." — CC
• "…leading them (people) to make decisions that may not be in their best interest." —MB
• "A lot of influence, IMO, means a serious weakness in our way of building knowledge and information." —IW
• "We are in a perfect storm of conspiracy. It's pretty scary." —KW
• "I suspect that a lot of the influence comes from hearing external confirmation of a thought you already had, but may not have admitted to." —JD
• "Information bias happens to AI." —SH

You can read their entire posts and others online.?

My conclusion and action plan?

1. Don't blame AI. It makes misinformation more efficient and, sadly, effective, but it's a weapon wielded by humans.
2. Teach critical thinking. We need to ensure that the next generation has the intellectual tools to know how to research, think, and question. There is no "Hallelujah" in a Chatbot spitting out an answer that you take blindly without further digging.??
3. Consequences. Truthfully, we need them—in some form of regulation with teeth. Catch an AI company purposefully deploying lies—hold them accountable. Same with politicians—or anyone for that matter. If those lies caused damage (people hurt—physically or emotionally), more so the punishment.
4. Media Consequences—not just digital or social. All forms of media...check the sources and take accountability.

And the easiest of all...THINK BEFORE YOU SHARE.

Choosing not to share misinformation hurts Social Media where they will care because it limits the sharing algorithms that feed off the dissension and thus limits their revenue

We need to create space to actually talk with others, ask questions, and research for truth and fact.?

Take responsibility for what you share. Don't blindly take other people's posts as truth. If you need more time to fact-check, don't share it.?

Thoughts? Did I miss something? Let me know in the comment below.