LETTER | Lies are widespread on the Internet. As it is easy to disseminate lies, it is also very easy to spot one. All it takes is a prudent mind to always scrutinise and differentiate fact from fiction.
Well-designed and careful lies also bombard your Facebook newsfeed and they are always too sneaky to be detected. You will never notice them and that is what makes them so good.
The thing is, these lies are not exactly that convincing but they somehow become the truth as they feed on our very own self-fulfilling wants and desires.
In theory, to create newsworthy content, news sites go out gathering data and writing stories based on what they find.
These sites might disagree but each is a vote for one version of the truth. They are there to let us read and think critically.
It is up to us to find commonalities or discrepancies and ultimately, the likely truth. Some sites may do this but it is not nearly enough because real reporting is quite expensive.
There is travel, legal, equipment and licensing costs and it also takes time.
Therefore to cut costs and time, some irresponsible “journalists” will write articles that are kind of a cheap, watered-down version. It is saddening to think about the effect this will have on the truth.
No longer is each news source being filtered through which the information is checked and researched but it simply becomes what other sources say and think. But who are these “sources”?
Even an honest mistake in one article can spread fast and quickly becomes a lie. And many an unsuspecting audience desperately spread what they see. These mistakes and lies have been taken as real news.
Sometimes, made-up facts are so effectively crafted that they are indistinguishable from the truth. Consequently, this results in a big circle of misinformation.
And there you have it, my friend, as that is how you manufacture lies to become truth. Who knows, maybe I am telling lies too.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.