SIFT the Noise - How to tell the difference between Bishop Williamson, Bishop Schneider and Archbishop Vigano

JMJ

There is a lot of fake news and even more biased news being reported these days and, sadly, normally reliable sources are falling prey to the FuddMuckers.

As many Tradicat readers know, I have an anaphylactic response to conspiracy theories and mis-information. It's only gotten stronger over the last few years.

Have you every noticed how Bishop Williamson would put forward conspiracy theories as fact? He wouldn't even accept an invitation to go to Auschwitz to verify his claims. Over course, he would probably put forward a conspiracy theory to defend his decision.

Well, that's why it is soooo important to think critically about what we hear and read. Especially today when technology has advanced to the point where dead men can - technologically speak and be seen (read deep fakes).

To put it bluntly, social media is a tool that is easily subverted as a tool for propaganda.

A good example would be Rebel Media, who purports to be seeking the truth but in reality it is just their biased truth, not THE truth.

That's why I've started using 'Ground News' (link) to assess news stories for bias.

I recently came across the SIFT process and think that it provides a good approach to assessing what we hear and see in the media ... and perhaps even in our daily conversations with people.

When combined with principles, this process can help to see through the noise and arrive at an understanding of the truth.

P^3

Source: Wayne State University

The Process

Step One: STOP

The first move is the simplest. STOP reminds you of two things:

If you STOP before you start reading content, you’re able to ask yourself if you trust the website or the source of information. Don’t read it or share it until you know what it is.
Further on, you may have to STOP again to remind yourself what your goal is. Adjust your strategy if it isn't working. Make sure you approach the problem at the right amount of depth for your purpose.

Questions to Ask Yourself at STOP

What kind of content is this?
Who wrote or created it?
When was it published?
Who published it?

Step Two: INVESTIGATE THE SOURCE

This is where you start to answer the questions you asked yourself at STOP: What kind of content is this? Is it a blog post, article, or statistic? Who wrote it? Who is it published by?

Investigating the source does not require you to do in-depth research and analysis. Rather, this step is a quick check into the expertise and agenda of the online content in question.

Taking sixty seconds to figure out where it is from before reading will help you decide if it is worth your time, and if it is, help you to better understand its significance and trustworthiness.

Online Verification Skills

Here is a video (2:45) on the importance of verifying your sources. The next video is located in the Trace Claims, Quotes, and Media Back to Their Original Context page of this guide.

Step Three: FIND BETTER COVERAGE

Sometimes, after you investigate the source, you'll find that the source is sufficient for your needs. However, this is not always the case. Maybe the quality of the source is low or it doesn’t adequately answer the questions you have.

This is when you would find better coverage. If you can’t determine the reliability of the source and you want to get an accurate story on the subject or claim, your best strategy is to start searching elsewhere.

Step Four: TRACE CLAIMS, QUOTES, AND MEDIA BACK TO THEIR ORIGINAL CONTEXT

A lot of things you encounter online have been stripped of context. This could be due to inaccurate or misleading re-reporting, edited sound and video, images being shared with inaccurate captions, etc.

In some cases, stories or claims can get better as they pass through intermediaries. However, in most cases the more a story circulates, the more it becomes warped and you’re presented with a radically wrong version of an event or piece of research. This is when you investigate further and start tracing back to the original source for full context.

Tutorials

Check those facts and be a confident information consumer.

The following 5 tutorials will walk you through the SIFT steps: Stop, Investigate the Source, Fine Better Coverage, Trace Claims.

SIFT: Stop
Before you accept information as true, STOP!
SIFT: Investigate the source.
One of the four "moves" after you STOP is to "investigate the source". As you'll see, you're not expected to do ground-breaking research, just some very quick checks like those professional fact-checkers use.
SIFT: Investigate the source
In this lesson, you will put the second move, Investigate the Source, to further use.
SIFT: Find Better Coverage
If investigating the source is not enough, you may need to Find Better Coverage.
SIFT: Trace Claims, Quotes, and Media Back to Their Original Context
Navigate through claims and stories that might be false due to re-reporting by putting the T (Trace Claims) in SIFT to use.

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