I this article an example of misinformation ... on the subject of misinformation?

[Plot Device]

Consider the source.

What do you think? I'm looking for a little meta-action here, guys.

http://usinfo.state.gov/media/Archive/2005/Jul/27-595713.html

How to Identify Misinformation

July 27, 2005 - by the US Department of State

How can a journalist or a news consumer tell if a story is true or false? There are no exact rules, but the following clues can help indicate if a story or allegation is true.

Does the story fit the pattern of a conspiracy theory?
Does the story fit the pattern of an “urban legend?”
Does the story contain a shocking revelation about a highly controversial issue?
Is the source trustworthy?
What does further research tell you?Does the story fit the pattern of a conspiracy theory?

Does the story claim that vast, powerful, evil forces are secretly manipulating events? If so, this fits the profile of a conspiracy theory. Conspiracy theories are rarely true, even though they have great appeal and are often widely believed. In reality, events usually have much less exciting explanations.

The U.S. military or intelligence community is a favorite villain in many conspiracy theories.

For example, the Soviet disinformation apparatus regularly blamed the U.S. military or intelligence community for a variety of natural disasters as well as political events. In March 1992, then-Russian foreign intelligence chief Yevgeni Primakov admitted that the disinformation service of the Soviet KGB intelligence service had concocted the false story that the AIDS virus had been created in a US military laboratory as a biological weapon.

[alleycat]

Is the post above misinformation on misinformation on misinformation?

;-)

My head hurts.

[Don]

I think the term you're looking for is disinformation, PD. That differentiates the accidentally wrong (mis...) from the intentionally wrong (dis...).

[Ali B]

"Does the story contain a shocking revelation about a highly controversial issue?"
Wow.
So all those shocking articles about the war are false because they are, in fact, shocking?

[Don]

I find it interesting that they have four other recommendations they consider more compelling than additional research. If it fits the pattern of a 'conspiracy theory' or an 'urban legend' you can discount it. Next, if has shocking revelations, cross it off the list. Number four is interesting... if the source is trustworthy (ie. FedGov?) then there's no reason for that independent research... just swallow the party line. Finally, if you've gotten past that gauntlet, it's time to research.

I know it's not in a flowchart, but the order of listing serves to impart an order of importance.

The official government 9/11 Commission Report (http://www.9-11commission.gov/report/911Report_Exec.pdf) says that:

This immeasurable pain was inflicted by 19 young Arabs acting at the behest of Islamists extremists headquartered in distant Afghanistan.
I think it's safe to say that if you believe radical Islam is a vast, powerful, evil force, that explanation meets this criteria from the misinformation site.
Does the story claim that vast, powerful, evil forces are secretly manipulating events?
I have no problem with this explanation, but it's a theory about a conspiracy. Since it's an officially sanctioned explanation, it's not considered a 'conspiracy theory,' however... because 'conspiracy theories' should be discounted.

A conspiracy theory is an attempt to explain an event that includes more than one player working together. Not all conspiracy theories, or even 'conspiracy theories' should be automatically dismissed. Some are worthy of investigation, some are not. Tarring with a broad brush is a handy tool for controlling popular opinion.

I could go on for days about this site, but I'll give somebody else a shot.

[SHBueche]

This is great, thanks for posting the URL. Reminds me of how some people take health "advice" they see online, as gospel, without fully exploring the message.

[VGrossack]

Really interesting questions here:

1 Does the story fit the pattern of a conspiracy theory?
2 Does the story fit the pattern of an “urban legend?”
3 Does the story contain a shocking revelation about a highly controversial issue?
4 Is the source trustworthy?
5 What does further research tell you?

I agree with Don (see, Don, I sometimes agree with you) that 1-4 shouldn't be used for determining whether or not something is true. However, I think 1-3 are worth considering for whether or not I want to research further.

I recommend considering news outlets from other places than the US. They'll often do stuff in English, so even if you don't know other languages, it's not hard to get their POVs. During the buildup to the Iraq war, I would watch CNN (all I was getting here in English at the time) and then watch NTV, the sister station that was in German. Even though they shared news information, the slant was completely different. For example, most of Europe was convinced that there were no WMDs, but when I tried to convince friend in the US of this I could not.

And, whenever possible, look at the numbers. Not just the conclusions, but what the assumptions are. There are lies - damned lies - and statistics.

[donroc]

Uh, critical thinking? :Shrug:

[Ageless Stranger]

On conspiracies;

Yes, there is a conspiracy, in fact there are a great number of conspiracies that are all tripping each other up. And all of those conspiracies are run by paranoid fantasists and ham-fisted clowns. If you are on a list targeted by the CIA, you really have nothing to worry about. If however, you have a name similar to somebody on a list targeted by the CIA, then you are dead. - Alan Moore.

[HeronW]

History has always been written by the winners, so basically everything is in doubt.

[benbradley]

"Does the story contain a shocking revelation about a highly controversial issue?"
Wow.
So all those shocking articles about the war are false because they are, in fact, shocking?
A decade ago there was a story originating on Drudge Report I found really hard to believe. It involved the Oval Office, an intern, and a cigar...