Social Media and the Dumbing Down of America

I shouldn’t write when I’m angry, but the dunderheads posting and commenting, pontificating and proselytizing, sharing and evangelizing, have raised my ire.

The posts are breathless, and no doubt designed to attract eyeballs. In the run-up to a presidential election year, they have become an epidemic:

“Obama Greenlights Bombing U.S. Vets in Turkey!”

“Heroic Navy Officer in Chattanooga Shooting May be Punished!”

“Hillary Uses Iwo Jima Image in her Global Warming Video!”

Predictably, these posts and others result in lengthy comment threads, populated by equally breathless, indignant citizens, just about all of whom are adults, and most of whom should probably not be posting when they’re angry.

The beauty of social media is how it provides an outlet for anyone to post just about anything on their mind, or to share anything they’ve written or stumbled across online with a large group of people. The bane of social media is how lies, rumors, skewed opinions, and scams can quickly spread to those same masses.

That’s nothing new. For some strange reason, as a populace, we are conditioned to believe everything we read online, especially if it is presented in a “newsy” way. Give it a headline that reads like fact, and many people will accept it as fact, despite the nebulous source. As a PR professional, accustomed to writing (factual) articles in a way to make them sound newsworthy, I understand the power of a good headline and strong lede to hook readers in and keep them reading.  If a story is shared or tweeted by one or more people we trust, it adds an additional sheen of credibility.

What bothers me is that the same Wonderful Wacky Web that gives people this power also provides vast opportunity to become citizen-journalists and fact-check what they’re reading…yet few people do this. It takes 30 seconds to verify or debunk just about anything, yet most people who comment can’t be bothered. What’s more alarming is that when you read the comments, it’s clear that many people post without even reading the original story! They are forming opinions based on a headline written by someone trying to stoke emotions or action…someone with an agenda, in other words.

Snopes is Your Friend

Some things just sound too ridiculous to believe. Others are fraught with misspellings or grammatical errors. Some make you ask, "Why didn't I hear about this before?" Just about all come from some website you’ve never heard of outside of a social media feed. I’m naturally skeptical, and having been a journalist I know there’s often more to a story than meets the eye. Like, you know, context, or another point of view.

I’m also an equal-opportunity debunker. I consider myself a liberal, and I am a registered Democrat, but I vote for the candidate, not the party. So while I frequently find myself defending President Obama from some absurd criticism (“latte salute,” anybody?), I’m just as likely to jump on the chance to poke holes in an article unfairly criticizing Republicans. And this goes beyond politics. Everything from urban myths to outdated memes to inflammatory “quotes” from celebrities, shared as gospel, are fair game.  

Snopes.com is usually the first place I turn, and it’s often the last. It is surprisingly complete, and its “red light/green light/yellow light” system of rating the veracity of a story is usually enough to end the discussion definitively one way or the other.

But Snopes is easy. Sometimes, it takes a few more clicks, and sometimes, the stories or situations are more complicated than can be summed up in a short headline at ConservativePost.com. Going in with the attitude “that can’t be right,” I find it isn’t, or it is one-sided, or simply false.

What does the flag-raising at Iwo Jima have to do with global warming? Nothing. Clinton's spot uses it in a montage highlighting that America has never been afraid to upset the status quo.

That “article” about the officer facing punishment for shooting back at the Chattanooga terrorist? It quotes widely from a story in the Navy Times, which simply said authorities are looking into why this sailor and another had weapons on them in violation of policy, as part of their overall investigation. Nowhere does that story or any other I could find say they might be punished. Indeed, most authorities are lauding them as heroes.

I tried commenting to that effect under the Facebook link, but I fear my plea for common sense was drowned out by a hundred-plus posters who just wanted to hurl invective at the military’s policy, or the current sitting president for being "anti-military" (it was George H.W. Bush’s administration that enacted the policy at issue, for the record).

Most thinking people, I do believe, want to differentiate what’s true and what’s not, but unfortunately social media has become a Wild West for those spewing slanted points of view – and those seeking opinions that hew close to their own. Or maybe people are just too busy to take the minute or two required to find a legitimate, corroborating source.

I, for one, am not content to take the written word as the truth, but it seems I’m in the minority when it comes to actually checking things out. Maybe that comes off as arrogant, especially since I take a certain pleasure in pointing out lies, inaccuracies and exaggerations I find. Some have even labeled me a troll for posting contradicting information or a link to a more complete or truthful article. So be it.

I just think social media would be a better place if there were more skeptics among us.

Gary Frisch is founder and president of Swordfish Communications, a full-service public relations agency in Laurel Springs, N.J. Visit Swordfish online at www.swordfishcomm.com.