There has got to be some connection to politics and the media with the latest study revelation about lies and liars.  Most people can misspeak, some people exaggerate, but some people tell lies with a knowing intent to deceive.  They feel they have some advantage to gain by not telling the truth. (there's that connection!)

It's interesting to know then. that those most inclined to seek such advantage are themselves most susceptible to believing the lies of others.  I guess another way to put it is, for example, that those who eagerly tell conspiracy stories to others are most likely to believe the conspiracy stories from others!

But don't take my word for it, after all, I'm in media and I could be exaggerating!  According to a report in the EurekAlert, University of Waterloo researchers found that people who frequently engage in “persuasive "B.S.ing" were actually quite bad at identifying it. Seems very much like some kind of Karma in action!  The idea of "it takes one to know one" does not apply here!

What's interesting is that the purveyors of falsehoods had trouble making out the difference between scientifically accurate facts and impressive sounding but meaningless fiction.  So what about "Fake News!" ?  Thanks for asking!   Those looking to fake you out seem to be, as lead study author Shane Littrell explains, most likely to be faked out by fake news.  (and there's the media connection) “We found that the more frequently someone engaged in persuasive bulls****ting, the more likely they are to be duped by various types of misleading information regardless of their cognitive ability, engagement in reflective thinking, or metacognitive skills.”

Most media types I know think they are the smartest people in the room, outdone only by politicians.  Maybe they both should read this study....but then they probably wouldn't gain self-awareness, they would simply chalk it up to Fake News!

 

 

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