The discussion of misinformation, “junk news,” and bots have been going around a lot, as have the notions of what journalists can and should be doing to fact-check these things. To that end, here’s a thread for thought from Justin Ling about how this can be working against us in the longer term:
1. Is it being widely shared?
2. Does it say something specific about a foreign adversary's goals?
3. Does it expose a fundamental weakness in our regulations or how technology is run?Even still, there's probably a few stories I wouldn't've published, in hindsight.
— Justin Ling (Has Left) (@Justin_Ling) August 13, 2019
I think we're also mythologizing the role of 3rd party advertisers. Their impact is unknown, but their activities are regulated.
And the new fetish for fact-checks, industry-wide, has set up election coverage that seems to be following social trends, not news or policy.
— Justin Ling (Has Left) (@Justin_Ling) August 13, 2019
So all to say, I think we need to sit back and take stock of our priorities. Can you imagine if a major outlet had a dedicated election healthcare unit? Or if a smaller outlet decided to devote 80% of their time covering climate policies?
— Justin Ling (Has Left) (@Justin_Ling) August 13, 2019
Sorry, earlier tweet should've read that there's no guarantee that disinfo/fake news would be part of a foreign adversary's strategy.
— Justin Ling (Has Left) (@Justin_Ling) August 13, 2019
And national security expert Stephanie Carvin adds a few thoughts of her own, to contextualize the problem:
https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1161424183185854464
https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1161424186214158336
https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1161424188500058112
https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1161424197408702465
Chris Selley. meanwhile, respectfully suggests that if the government is so worried about online misinformation, that they stop pushing it themselves with their own particular bits of spin and torque that plant the same kind of false notions and expectations in people’s minds – and he’s absolutely correct.
Good reads:
- Justin Trudeau met with Toronto mayor John Tory, and while gun violence was on the agenda, Trudeau reiterated that any plans will be part of the campaign.
- Trudeau also said that the report from Anne McLellan on whether to split out the Attorney General role won’t come out until the Ethics Commissioner’s report does.
- An OECD report says Canada is the top country in the world to attract and retain immigrants, and how it benefits our economy.
- The head of CSIS has been saying – behind closed doors – that China and Russia pose threats to Canada, particularly China using universities against us.
- A report out of the Canadian Forces says the number of reported sexual assaults and misconduct has fallen in the last year, but it’s too soon to say if this is a trend.
- The Canadian agriculture sector is worried that a trade deal between the US and China will had an adverse effect on our exports.
- The Liberals have now formally nominated tech entrepreneur Taleeb Noormohamed to run against Jody Wilson-Raybould.
- Lisa Raitt and Erin O’Toole had to return fundraising donations after they ran afoul of the new rules dealing with leadership candidates.
- The NDP are running an 18-year-old against Pierre Poilievre, who wants to become the youngest MP in history (the honour currently held by Pierre-Luc Dusseault).
- Scott Moe is trying to make infrastructure announcements in Saskatchewan into a partisan issue.
- Kady O’Malley’s Process Nerd column defends the decision by the election debate commission to not invite Maxime Bernier to the party.
- My column takes issue with the Liberals’ needing to declare a “national electoral urgency” to finish their nominations, which further disempowers the grassroots.
Want more Routine Proceedings? Become a patron and get exclusive new content.