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Toni Nagel's avatar

What you are proposing is critical thinking...something that is not taught in schools and something that most people are too lazy to accomplish! It requires educating oneself to both sides of the argument and empathy for the other side of the argument. Unfortunately main stream media and social media are more concerned about number of clicks and followers. I’m sad for our society and not very hopeful that we will be able to correct course and become accepting and respectful of all points of view.

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Storm A King's avatar

The commercialization of hate has become a more significant and dangerous problem since the widespread use of the "fake news" label. In the past, cognitive dissonance served as a corrective force in our culture. When people were confronted with evidence that contradicted their core beliefs, they would have to either deny it or change their beliefs to conform to the new reality. However, since any information can now be dismissed as "fake news," this corrective force is significantly weakened.

We live in a post-truth world, which feels like navigating a minefield. Moreover, outrage fatigue is a real issue. People who would otherwise push back against racism and xenophobia have grown weary and left the playing field.

It's worth noting that both extreme right and extreme left news outlets engage in disinformation and information manipulation to keep their audience angry and emotionally invested. This, in turn, enables them to sell ads at a premium. However, the far right and far left are not the same. The far right uses outright lies, whereas the far left selectively presents the truth.

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