76. Fake news and lies

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I have been having some discussions, in the last few days, about political fake news and lies or misrepresentations by politicians. Both of these are quite frequent and, in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, for example, we are being exposed to our fair share. Of course, this is not exclusive to the pandemic, the same happened with Brexit, and just wait for the next US presidential election. Are they the same? What is the difference? Accountability. When a politician lies or misrepresents, for example dressing up the successful handling of the pandemic or covering up PPE availability problems, facts can be checked, the lie challenged and the politician made accountable (in a hypothetical World where electorates still care about honesty and truth). Fake news are insidious because of the lack of accountability. Their origin is unknown, they are spread by a combination of bots, gullible members of the public and desperate presidents and therefore there is no accountability

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Location: Hereford, UK

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