I would like to share a pet peeve with regards to the posts in the social media. Why is it that people these days are so gullible? They are too lazy to research something on the internet, especially on social media. They react so fast without even knowing whether the post is a fact or fiction.

It's just too easy to hit the "share" button I suppose. Or, maybe they're already biased so they naturally buy into an article if it says what they believe to be true. The truth is becoming less of a thing.

 

Some of what gets shared seems really outlandish. Do you ever comment on the post or attempt to discuss the matter privately?

As a lot of those articles want us to do, I think people react to them more than they really think about them. Like @Ogmore said, it's too easy to hit the "share" button. Natural biases also come into play, I'm sure. At the end of the day, people believe what they want to believe. I think people also like starting arguments sometimes.

 

I used to engage but it's not even worth it anymore. Even when you point people to a more fact-filled article, they ignore it or try to find some other article that will support the one they shared.

I also don't spend the time to explain to them what they are sharing are not facts. There was even a close of friend of mine that sent me about the end of the world, and she told me that the world will end on Dec. 31, 2017. I don't have to rub it into her that what she believed was wrong.

The problem with these people is that they will defend their biased beliefs even when we show them the facts. I guess the best thing we can do is to ignore and hide their updates.

It's interesting how people work.

I think a lot of it has to do with how social media is so simple and immediate, we forget we're making real, concrete decisions on what posts we believe or spread.

 

In the case of articles that get people riled up, it feels like people are trying to give themselves a quick sense of purpose. A lot of people seem to just believe something that gets them angry, and anyone who questions it just becomes "part of the problem." Anger and indignation spurs you to take that first step towards a solution and brings your tolerance for obstacles to zero, even if your actions aren't well thought out. It takes some discipline to use effectively.

People are often quick to share unverified information to seem like they are in the know. However, many of them end up spreading wrong information, or 'fake news'.

Speaking of fake news, how do we determine that an article, a video, or even a picture is really what it portrays? I become doubtful about something when there is a phrase like "pass it along or else" or "this is true".