The Critical Thinking Crisis: What You Can Do About It
Become your own editor
Imagine a world where one in five people get their news from social media. Of that group, imagine that 40% of young adults under 30 get their news from TikTok.
The stark reality is that you don’t have to imagine such a world. It’s our current reality — one that’s fueling a critical thinking crisis.
Instead of consuming news and media from objective sources, we increasingly rely on influencers and social media accounts, almost none of whom have editorial departments fact-checking their work. Traditional media has adapted to this brave new world by injecting more opinion in the endless quest for eyeballs and attention.
As a result, many of us are told what to think. And unfortunately, many of us comply. At best, when we encounter misinformation or disinformation we experience confusion.
“Should I fact-check this?”, you might ask yourself.
We have to be our own editors
The modern media environment has thrust editorial roles upon us — the consumers — whether we like it or not. Few of us are biologically equipped to handle it.
We are prone to clickbait. Subliminal manipulation. Deepfakes. Misinformation and disinformation.