Identifying Misinformation

You’re scrolling through social media and someone shares a post that doesn't sound quite right. Is it true, or is it another case of misinformation on the Internet? What would you say? Misinformation has always been around, but it’s even more of a challenge now that so much of our lives are lived online. In an age with so much information from so many sources, how can we discern what’s true and what’s not? Here three things to keep in mind: 1) Beware of stories that oversimplify reality. 2) Beware of stories that are fear-based. 3) Beware of stories that distort God’s narrative. First, beware of stories that oversimplify reality. Stories that tend to over-simplify what’s wrong are often just stories. For example, it’s very common for stories to offer a single explanation… that everything is the fault of a group of “bad guys…” and those bad guys are other people. We aren’t to blame. This tactic of misinformation is nothing new. For example, in Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler blamed all of Germany’s problems on one small group of people: Jews. He claimed this small group was responsible for the poverty and cultural decay of post-war Germany. That’s one way he was able to dehumanize an entire group of people. Misinformation is often built on other misinformation; Mein Kampf relied on a false document from 1903 called The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, which was misinformation claiming that the Jews had a secret plan for world domination. These two made-up stories framed Jewish people as scapegoats for all of Europe’s problems. In reality, these problemshad complex explanations, ranging from corrupt government officials and inflation to unwise foreign policy and the shift from agrarian to industrial economies. So beware of misinformation that reduces a complex situation down to a single explanation. Christians, especially should know that the world isn’t divided into us vs. them. Evil doesn’t come from a small group of others; rather, as Alexander Solzhenitsyn famously said, “The line between good and evil runs through every human heart.” Number 2: Beware of stories that are fear-based. The idea that a small, sinister group is controlling our political and cultural destiny creates fear. By keeping people in fear, ill-meaning individuals often frame themselves as heroes who stand up against evil—and gain lots of power. Hitler framed himself as the one man who could save Germany. He used misinformation to stoke fear, and offered a clear political solution to the fear: the Final Solution, also known as the Holocaust. Fear is a highly motivating emotion; it drives us to do things that we usually won’t do. Unchecked, fear pushes us into moral compromises about our leaders and our own actions. There are evil people in the world. And there are scary situations. But our political and cultural destiny is not ultimately controlled by a small, sinister group of people, even if they do exist. Christians especially shouldn’t be trapped in fear because we are people of hope. We know that the real story of the world is being written by a good, loving God. Number 3: Beware of stories that distort God’s narrative. Misinformation often comes in biblical language, using references to God, demons, or prophecy. When those references are taken and used out of context, the narrative they prop up is not God’s narrative, even if they sound plausible. Kevin Bywater gives us a helpful way of evaluating false claims that come under the guise of Christianity. He calls it “Do the Math.” If an idea or a story adds to the Word of God, subtracts from the Deity and authority of Christ, multiplies the requirements for salvation, or divides the Body of Christ, we ought not trust it. So the next time you see something on social media that seems “off,” just remember these three things to determine if it is another case of misinformation on the Internet: 1) Beware of stories that oversimplify reality. 2) Beware of stories that are fear-based. 3) Beware of stories that distort God’s narrative.

To learn more about the false document of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, please visit: https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/protocols-of-the-elders-of-zion