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| countercurrents.org |
Am I the only one noticing the new it phrase seems to be "Fake News"? We can trace its rise in popularity back to the incoming United States president, Donald Trump.
I do not think the phrase has been used as frequently as it has been since he took office.
We only need to think back to the debate surrounding the crowd size at Trump's inauguration to see post truth or fake news working at it's best. Trump and his administration claiming that their declaration of having the largest audience ever at an inauguration, was their way of using fake news to respond to what they say was the media's use of fake news when they reported on the diminished size of the crowd at the event(Kristiansen, 2018). Way to show them!
What a way to begin a presidency. The fact that this inauguration conversation required a month long investigation from the Department of the Inspector General and proof from the National Park Service (NPS) that they did not alter estimates of the crowd size at the inauguration, shows just how much of an impact fake news can have and how quickly it can spread.
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| Metro.co.uk |
I worry not only for the United States but also about the world as a whole because we also feel the effects of an individual who has brought such strong feelings of doubt to the world.
Do we know if all the stories Trump claims to be fake news are in fact fake news? Is there a conspiracy among Trump haters to make him look bad in the media? I do not know if there are any ways of truly figuring this out without relying on tried and true objective facts...but who do we trust to provide those?
Kristiansen, L. J., & Kaussler, B. (2018). The bullshit doctrine: Fabrications, lies, and nonsense in the age of trump. Informal Logic, 38(1), 2. doi:10.22329/il.v38i1.5067
Hello Rachael,
ReplyDeleteI strongly feel that everything that comes out of Trump's mouth is fake; I do not trust him. He has been caught in many scandals and is continuing to put many lives at risk. He has no respect for woman, and can not be trusted when it comes to making smart decisions that will benefit the country long-term. He should not be president; he is not a leader or a positive role model for our generation.
Thank you,
Ioana
I recall reading somewhere that Trump admitted that he simply calls negative news about him fake news. With the amount of negative news about him, it's really no surprise he tweets it every other day. Skepticism is great and all, but calling everything fake is pretty ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteRachel,
ReplyDeleteI think it is crazy how much information Trump references as “fake news”. It seems as if he is constantly quick to call something fake if he doesn’t agree with it. This is as childish as when someone doesn’t want to hear something, so they plug their ears and sing over the person. He is being childish and immature by disregarding anything he doesn’t agree with as fake, rather than being a grownup and countering it with a logical argument. Even with this act of immaturity alone, I think the US needs to take a step back and revaluate who is running their country.
Lauren Sandall
Hi Rachel!
ReplyDeleteI really liked your use of "trumped", it was a great pun and made me laugh! It is hard to distinguish fake real news surrounding Trump. Trump himself does not make it any easier to differentiating facts from fiction because he does not seem to know the difference. Anything that opposes him in anyway Trump disregards as fake news and anything that he likes he declares true.His constant tweets are used to create his reality, thus his audience cannot distinguish fake from real.
Great post!
Good post, Rachel. It adds some helpful info to the first on the blog. Be sure to edit posts, as there are some moments of unclear grammar ("Am I the only one noticing the new it phrase seems to be "Fake News"?"), and there/their confusion. Overall, think about what makes this blog stand out. What should readers take a way from it that they wouldn't on the myriad sources talking about fake news and 'post-truth'? Personalizing can be one way of making it stand out, but not the only. I'm interested to see where this goes.
ReplyDelete