An AI analysis shows that climate deniers increasingly use charts, data visuals, and academic design to appear trustworthy. Researchers warn that fact-checking alone can’t counter the power of these deceptive aesthetics.
An AI analysis shows that climate deniers increasingly use charts, data visuals, and academic design to appear trustworthy. Researchers warn that fact-checking alone can’t counter the power of these deceptive aesthetics.
Something I’ve been realizing lately is that fascism’s whole deal is adopting the appearances of trustworthy institutions like universities, activism and TV news (and apparently scientific papers) but the goal isn’t to inform it’s to persuade. All the bullshit ultimately leads to the same path.
In Germany, there is the term “Gleichschaltung” for what happened to institutions after 1933. Basically, Nazis applied pressure and bullying to get out of institutions anyone who would state a different opinion. Any institution not obeying to this was forbidden soon, even churches or organizations like the boy scouts or the “Wandering Bird movement”. And after that, a rule of violence started.
And it is all too clear that the people in power in the US are going straight after the institutions, like universities and military. I think the political and social resistance from communities and cities is really important.
Today I wish I had been wrong but for me it was already hair-rising for me what language e.g. the Brexit supporters were using in 2017. Fascist language has tell-tale and unmistakeable signs. It was like they were using Goebbels’ memoirs as an instruction manual.
I have been wondering for a long time what all the pervasive bullshit language e.g. in larger corporations or, say, greenwashing PR statements, means and what would be its purpose. Today I think that it is primarily power-play. It is displaying the power that somebody else can re-define reality in whatever illogical way.
Good observation. One of the protections from this kind of appropriation is peer review (in every sense). As the amount of information available for review has shot up, the available time of peers capable of reviewing it has not risen to compensate. Additionally, we’re developing more and more ways to compromise peer review itself. I think this is (in part) to blame for the rise of fascist elements in the world. This pressure (combined with the ratcheting up of climate change realities) has put humanity in a precarious position.