EARLIER today we responded to the latest nonsense from ZDNet. So-called 'Fake News' isn't limited to politics and the term wasn't coined or popularised by Donald Trump; I keep reminding people that the term was floated a lot well before the US election (primarily in China) and after or during the election the Democratic Party used the term "Fake News" to describe what helped Trump win the nomination and later helped him 'win' the election (with 3 million fewer voters than Clinton). "Fake News" as a term was later adopted or hijacked by Trump, who twisted it to suit his own agenda. Those are just the facts and people can ascertain or verify by checking news archives from around 2015.

"Let's throw 'wings' out the window and extract pertinent facts, based on underlying evidence. Sure, it is a lot of work, but it's perfectly doable."At the moment the US is governed by oligarchs (same as last month) who own the media. "Fake News" persists, on both 'sides of the aisle' or 'wings' (superficial and binary term). To cope with misleading news or fabrications we need better media and truly independent media that doesn't entertain tribalism. Sadly, even though such media does exist, it's enjoying nowhere near the reach (or audience size) as the CNNs and Foxes of the world. One way to help improve accuracy and reduce the pollution in people's heads (including a superficial divide along lines such as race and gender, not class) is to create solid alternatives. Yes, we need to reward or to 'fuel' independent news sites. They exist not only in the realm of politics but also in technology.

Sticking to the facts is difficult when your organisation is funded by the likes of 'generous' Google or when the boss of the newsroom (the one bankrolling the news) is some oligarch wishing to never pay any taxes. For independent media to thrive we must not only build it but also support it. Let's throw 'wings' out the window and extract pertinent facts, based on underlying evidence. Sure, it is a lot of work, but it's perfectly doable. EPO management managed to pollute European and international media with shallow pieces, sometimes by bribing and blackmailing media companies (clearly a misuse of applicants' money). In the case of politics, we very well know who owns and controls many of the largest media companies; it's not just about ideology but about personal agenda and distracting the general population (the 'plebs' or 'peasants') from big issues such as tax evasion, war crimes, soaring national debt (which grifting leads to), and global warming. ⬆