Urban Legends

To believe, or not to believe, that is the question. Authenticity on the web is an oxymoron to me. The web is vast and limitless. There are very few checks and balances in place to determine the authenticity of the information presented through the web. The standard rules and regulations of journalistic information reporting don't apply to the web. With so much information available it is easy to get lost in the information that appeals to our own anxiety and fear.

As I was going through the tools provided for this week's activities I clicked on the urban legends link on the class blog site. I was taken to a page on About.com where I was challenged to spot the fakes in a series of photographs. I clicked through several photos and found myself surprised by my inability to determine which photos were actually real. I also discovered that my reactions to the photos and their authenticity were heavily based on gut and emotional reactions. During this exercise I learned that I am extremely cynical. I was only accurate with my answers 50% of the time. I guessed that just about every one of the photos were fake. I was surprised to find out how many of the photos were actually real. For example, the photo with the desert camel spiders. The spiders were huge and I just knew they were photoshopped to add an extra element of shock and awe. To my surprise the photo was real.

What are my “take-away” realizations based on this week’s activities? I personally feel based on what I read that we live in a culture that seeks to sensationalize in order to perpetuate fear and ignorance. I believe we live in a society that seeks to highlight events that are sensational. I also believe that some stories are manufactured to make them more exciting then they really are. We live in a world with exposure to news and information 24/7. You can find out almost anything you want to know, as well as a great deal of information you don’t want to know. Yet it is often times extremely difficult to determine the difference between what is fact and what is fiction. Learning to think critically is extremely important if we want to become better at determining what is fact and what is fiction. A good example of this would be the recent healthcare debate. As media consumers we need to become savvy enough to conduct our own research into the information presented. I also believe it's important to understand and analyze the argument from both sides. The ability to focus on the facts of the argument, instead of the emotion it generates, is an example of critical thinking and how it can assist us in making informed decisions.