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Current Projects: Environment of Misinformation
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health - Center for Health Security ^ | August 6, 2021 | Open Philanthropy Project

Posted on 08/06/2021 2:03:30 PM PDT by Jim Noble

Recently, the dissemination of misinformation has become an important global issue. While the spread of misinformation is not a new phenomenon, the emergence of social media platforms that connect networks of people, who often have similar opinions and cultural beliefs, has exacerbated and amplified this problem. Although misinformation is often associated with political campaigns, the public health community has not been exempted from its negative effects. Characterizing the spread of science- or health-related misinformation can allow for a more critical and evidence-based analysis of misinformation and inform risk communication strategies during public health emergencies.

During infectious disease outbreaks, effective communication is critical for efficient response and recovery efforts. Fear, uncertainty, and lack of knowledge may increase opportunities for the propagation of misinformation. Given some of these psychological factors, emergency situations can be particularly ideal for the spread of misinformation because the information seeking behaviors of affected parties are increased. Public health professionals have acknowledged that social media will now play a major role in the communication of future disasters, increasing the need for better understanding of misinformation.

This project takes a unique look at misinformation in the context of health-related emergencies, disasters, and outbreaks through an examination of Twitter, news media, and public policy. Additionally, we are assessing the landscape of potential actions that government-entities are taking to combat misinformation.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: academia; covid; deepstate; opensociety
This is an excellent example of how states, or para-state actors (Open Society et al) fund research the result of which is to "discover" potential actions that government-entities can take to combat "misinformation". Of course, what is discovered is what the state wants to do in the first place, and when they do, the politicians (GOP included) will say, "We are just following the science".
1 posted on 08/06/2021 2:03:30 PM PDT by Jim Noble
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To: Jim Noble

Here is the real problem:

The researchers no doubt view approved sources of information by Google/YouTube/Twitter/FaceBook as “Truth”.

And it isn’t. It is THEIR version of “Truth”. They shape and manipulate information to suit their needs, pain and simple.


2 posted on 08/06/2021 2:06:26 PM PDT by rlmorel (Leftists are The Droplet of Sewage in a gallon of ultra-pure clean water.)
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To: rlmorel

Yes, they shape it, as you say, “to fit their needs”, which now include the “needs” of the funding source.

Instead of money laundering (so 20th century!), we now have fact laundering.


3 posted on 08/06/2021 2:10:19 PM PDT by Jim Noble (Extremism in the defense of Liberty is no vice)
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To: Jim Noble

John Hopkins was part of the World Economic Forum/Bill Gates Event 201 wargamming exercise in 2019 (October) that discussed how to shut down the global economy for an extended period of time in response to a “pandemic”.


4 posted on 08/06/2021 2:35:03 PM PDT by a fool in paradise (Lean on Joe Biden to follow Donald Trump's example and donate his annual salary to charity.)
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To: Jim Noble

They hate us! They REALLY HATE US!


5 posted on 08/06/2021 2:45:23 PM PDT by backwoods-engineer (But what do I know? I'm just a backwoods engineer.)
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To: Jim Noble

We lived bathed in misinformation.

These academic analyses ignore most of it and accept it.


6 posted on 08/06/2021 2:52:57 PM PDT by ifinnegan ( Democrats kill babies and harvest their organs to sell)
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To: a fool in paradise

The person working on the project is funded by Open Philanthropy who was funded by 2 couples. One of the couples are Cari Tuna and Dustin Moscovitz, Facebook founders.

The Globalist agenda on display.


7 posted on 08/06/2021 2:53:48 PM PDT by wac3rd (Somewhere in Hell, Ted Kennedy snickers....)
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To: ifinnegan

It’s ironic, or funny, or something, that they eliminate the government as a potential source of “misinformation” by appealing to governments to combat it.


8 posted on 08/06/2021 2:56:48 PM PDT by Jim Noble (Extremism in the defense of Liberty is no vice)
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To: rlmorel
They have also -- quite successfully I should add -- been able to characterize anything that deviates from what they generate, distribute and desire as "misinformation" (in contrast to considering it as, say, a "reasoned counter argument").

While this tactic may produce short-term results, in the absence of critique by and consideration of contrary viewpoints it is doomed to failure ... just hope our Republic and Constitution can survive that long while under incessant attack.

9 posted on 08/06/2021 3:02:48 PM PDT by glennaro (Dennis Prager: "Until it's safe" means "Never")
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To: Jim Noble
New Zealand PM told public ‘we are your single source of truth’…

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/flashback-new-zealand-pm-told-public-we-are-your-single-source-of-truth/

Government is becoming our “way”, “truth”, and “life”.
10 posted on 08/06/2021 5:53:38 PM PDT by Jan_Sobieski (Sanctification)
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To: Jim Noble

Communists do not allow dissent. That is all this is about.


11 posted on 08/06/2021 6:31:22 PM PDT by EastTexasTraveler
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To: glennaro

I am in complete agreement, as hopelessly optimistic as that sometimes seems to me.

But the Left has been all in on short term results, here’s to hoping we wake up in 2022 and try to fix what they have done.


12 posted on 08/06/2021 7:14:31 PM PDT by rlmorel (Leftists are The Droplet of Sewage in a gallon of ultra-pure clean water.)
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To: Jim Noble

“Fact Laundering” describes that perfectly. And how they did that in the 2020 election should have opened everyone’s eyes.


13 posted on 08/06/2021 7:19:54 PM PDT by rlmorel (Leftists are The Droplet of Sewage in a gallon of ultra-pure clean water.)
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To: Jim Noble

I am stealing that phrase, you are correct.


14 posted on 08/06/2021 9:27:49 PM PDT by grey_whiskers (The opinions are solely those of the author and are subject to change with out notice.)
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To: Jan_Sobieski
New Zealand PM told public 'we are your single source of truth'...

Been done before. It was called Pravda.

...with a rusty, red-hot railroad spike. Sideways.

15 posted on 08/06/2021 9:29:15 PM PDT by grey_whiskers (The opinions are solely those of the author and are subject to change with out notice.)
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To: EastTexasTraveler

“ Communists do not allow dissent. That is all this is about.”

You are wrong.

You are right that the US Bolshevik insurgency is using this event to increase and consolidate power.

But it’s ABOUT a highly contagious disease that causes severe illness in lots of people and what the best thing to do about it is.

We don’t know what the best thing to do is, so you have to decide in the face of uncertainty, which sucks.


16 posted on 08/07/2021 6:09:43 PM PDT by Jim Noble (The nation cannot be saved until the GOP is destroyed)
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To: EastTexasTraveler

Remember the Reagan 1984 commercial “There’s a bear in the woods. Some people think the bear isn’t real” ?

That’s the situation.

My take after 18 months is that the bear is real. The view that it’s not - well, de Nile isn’t just a river in Egypt.


17 posted on 08/07/2021 6:12:40 PM PDT by Jim Noble (The nation cannot be saved until the GOP is destroyed)
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To: Jim Noble

Great Thread with great comments.

This Pandemic is changing us in so many ways.

The fast money from web-site traffic and 15 minutes of internet fame must be a powerful drug.

Like all drugs, the ones who suffer the most are the people who hang around the addict.

Despite all that, having the Government tell us what’s true and what isn’t is just as flawed.
Governments change. The truth changes with it.


18 posted on 08/07/2021 6:27:14 PM PDT by David Chase
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