Searching For Truth

For someone whose tagline has been "knowledge is power," these are especially concerning times. With the advent/growth of AI, the de-emphasis of critical thinking in many US schools, a massive amount of political propaganda, formerly independent media and news outlets being coerced into not covering the world or current events critically, as well as non-stop lies coming from the White House, I simply can't figure out what is true and what isn't.

I have long relied on historically reliable newspapers like the Washington Post and the New York Times, as well as public broadcasting and the late night shows to get my news (combined with some necessary humor). Well, the Washington Post is experiencing an exodus of sorts with many of its finest journalists leaving due to a change in corporate direction, and the New York Times has really weakened its political news coverage of late. Plus, the Center for Public Broadcasting (parent of NPR & PBS) is closing down due to federal budget cuts, and CBS is cancelling The Late Show With Stephen Colbert after its parent company (Paramount) settled a lawsuit with Trump. Yikes!

Ever since KellyAnn Conway's "alternative facts" comment, it has been clear that some don't want us to have a clear picture of what is fact versus what is fiction. And it's working. Aside from politics (which I briefly address below), there is so much misinformation floating around that I find myself constantly including "presumably" or "based on what I've read which may or may not be true" in many of the things I discuss these days. I see wildly differing visions and coverage of the Israel/Gaza war, I see wildly differing opinions of medications and whether they should be taken, I see wildly different statistics for public data (education, environmental, economic, etc) because our government doesn't want real facts disseminated (you can guess why). I see news coverage outside of mainstream media which tells a totally different story of the same thing mainstream media has covered.

And then there's the opacity of what's happening in US politics in general and with Trump in particular. He is trying desperately to convey his personal invincibility and superiority through a non-stop litany of lies -- one of the latest being his boast that he has solved 6 wars so far in this presidency. (Oh, please.) Then there is the stifling and shutting down of historically relied-upon sources of information, which is serious enough that the Federal Reserve Bank is now unable to trust economic indicators. Trump has fired and sued a slew of experts (most recently the Labor Statistics Chief) and institutions which dared contradict his delusional vision of himself and the US. And, with businesses and politicians falling in line out of fear of retribution, as well as the "temporary" removal of his two impeachments from an impeachment exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute, there's a clear desire to rewrite history and alter reality.

And, with most people living in their own echo chambers, it is easy to see how misinformation is being spread. So, what can we do to ensure that we are not unwittingly passing on more misinformation? There are very few strategies I find to be useful:

• International coverage of US and world politics seems to be less biased. As such, I have started reading/ following BBC, which helps a bit, especially when combined with more local media sources.

• Independent sources of information that cite sources and which are more academic than news-focused are, in my opinion, more trustworthy than mainstream media as it is clear they are trying to disseminate truth. For me this is Heather Cox Richardson, but there are others.

And when all else fails, I stick with things I can always trust and rely on: food, travel, friends, family, and what I see for myself.

How are you satisfying your quest for knowledge these days? What sources are you trusting? Enquiring minds want to know (at least I hope they do)! Remember, knowledge is power -- keep it real and keep spreading it!