Bullspotting
Finding Facts in the Age of Misinformation
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- $18.99
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
This entertaining and educational book applies the tools of critical thinking to identify the common features and trends among misinformation campaigns. With illustrations drawn from conspiracy theorists and deniers of every stripe, the author teaches readers how rumors are started, and the rhetorical techniques and logical fallacies often found in misleading or outright false claims. What distinguishes real conspiracies from conspiracy theories, real science from pseudoscience, and actual history from bogus accounts purporting to be history? How does one evaluate the credibility of rumors and quotes or judge the soundness of legal arguments advanced by tax deniers? Readers will learn how to make these critical distinctions and also how to spot "evidence" that has been manufactured or manipulated in some way to create a false impression.At a time when average citizens are bombarded with false information every day, this entertaining book will prove to be not only a great read but also an indispensable resource.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The Internet has become a conduit for conspiracy theories and a Pandora's box of hoaxes, outrageous tales, and fake news items. Atlanta attorney Collins casts an analytical eye over a wide spectrum of subjects, from alien astrology and Atlantis to the Flat Earth Society, Holocaust denials, and the 9/11 attacks. "Always be skeptical of information lacking in significant details," warns Collins. Fanciful suppositions can be generated by simple errors or because someone believes a satire from the Onion to be legitimate news. The longest chapter is devoted to pseudoscience because it is, Collins says, "incredibly varied, potentially complex, and more sophisticated than your average Internet conspiracy theory." Collins tracks the origins of bogus beliefs across Facebook and Twitter: Martin Luther King never said, "I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy." These were the words of a young English teacher leading in to a King quote, but twisted tweets by others went viral. With similar in-depth probes into birther theories, the risks of alternative medicine, vaccine denialists, historical revisionism, and armchair lawyers, this is a valuable aid to detecting false information amid rumors running wild.
