Why are lies thriving? | Al Jazeera Untangles

Comments · 261

• AL

  @aljazeeraenglish · 1 year ago (edited) · pinned

  Thanks for tuning in. Featuring compelling stories, including the United States elections, bird flu and COVID-19 misinformation, with insights from experts, the episode employs dynamic visuals and infographics to dissect this pressing issue and offer solutions. We&apos;d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. <br><br>Watch the second episode, Connected and Alone, here: <a href="http://aje.io/connectedandalone">aje.io/connectedandalone</a><br>Watch the third episode, The Privacy Paradox, here: <a href="http://aje.io/privacyparadox">aje.io/privacyparadox</a><br>Watch the fourth episode, Brand Me, here: <a href="http://aje.io/brandme">aje.io/brandme</a><br><br>Follow Al Jazeera Untangles on social media to stay updated: <br>Instagram: <a href="https://instagram.com/ajeuntangles">https://instagram.com/ajeuntangles</a><br>X: <a href="https://x.com/ajeuntangles">https://x.com/ajeuntangles</a>

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• JC

  @jcgomezrj · 1 year ago

  &quot;You know what I want today? A complex multi-layered explanation with conflicting evidence and no clear conclusion.&quot;<br><br>OMG give a prize to whoever wrote that line!

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• ST

  @stevesmith-sb2df · 1 year ago

  Long ago we had editors that demanded sources before printing the news. Now anything goes on social media.

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• SC

  @scottvance74 · 1 year ago

  Thank you for producing this. &nbsp;Having been subject to deception from (mostly pious) religious frauds for much of my life, it is helpful that at a minimum we are at least starting to discuss the importance of truth and the most common methods and motivators for deception.

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• RE

  @RexChaplin · 1 year ago

  I like that phrase - &quot;free market speech&quot;. As soon as money becomes involved, all systems, ideals, philosophies, activities becomes exclusively about money.

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• RE

  @reyhaz · 1 year ago

  “Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”<br>― Marcus Aurelius , Meditations

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• FA

  @farahmo4519 · 1 year ago

  Thanks Al Jazeera ❤❤❤🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸

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• ST

  @Steve-d4m9m · 1 year ago

  People prefer stories to empirical study. Finding out takes time and effort and general other resources. Believing a story takes a mere moment and is effortless.

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• KR

  @kristineglapa6397 · 1 year ago

  Truth makes sense lies full of &nbsp;contradictions

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• DI

  @dissent-rzxt · 10 months ago

  Aljazeera describing hostages as captives is a great example of misinformation

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• BW

  @bwatson7586 · 1 year ago

  People are lied to from the moment they&apos;re born, that alone shows how easy it is for lies to thrive.

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• SU

  @SuperMindsUnlocked · 1 year ago

  The rise of social media has turned the horizontal spread of information into a disaster. Our brains, wired for survival, instinctively latch onto viral content—even misinformation—because social conformity feels safer than skepticism. In an infodemic, truth becomes secondary to the primal urge to &quot;belong&quot; and avoid social exclusion. <br>Most people lack the time, tools, or incentive to fact-check. Why bother? Discovering the truth often brings no reward—only isolation and frustration. Debunking lies is exhausting, and when the cost of knowing only makes life harder, even well-intentioned people surrender to the noise rather than fight it. <br>The cruel irony? &quot;Horizontal&quot; dissemination isn’t as organic as it seems. Social media &quot;influencers&quot; and viral algorithms are often paid puppets of vertical power structures—mainstream media, corporations, and political elites. What appears to be grassroots sharing is frequently top-down manipulation in disguise, turning free speech into a weapon against the very public it claims to empower. <br>This is an excellent documentry.

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