In this day and age when people are overrun by “information,” a person must at least try to analyze and understand what much of it is all about.
Dictionary.com defines the verb “inform” as “to give or impart knowledge of a fact or circumstance,” and the noun “information” as “knowledge communicated or received concerning a particular fact or circumstance.”
OK, maybe when those definitions were devised, they were largely valid. But I’d say that nowadays, the word “fact” doesn’t belong in either one.
Basically, it has become standard procedure for all mainstream news organizations and online information sources to ignore facts and modify material being presented to fit within the guidelines of specific ideals and beliefs, and more importantly, goals. That modification can come from addition, subtraction, tweaking or even outright lying; the technique isn’t really significant, because it’s not the means that matters, but only the end result.
In other words, we’re not being given factual recaps and accounts, but rather stories designed to make us think a certain way.
That’s where discernment comes in. It’s critical to use it wisely whenever hearing what is being labeled information, because that’s the only way truth can be recognized and sifted out of the rest of the crud.
In the Bible, the Apostle John urges people to “not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). John was providing a warning because he knew falsehoods would be presented as truth and that what he knew was true would be treated otherwise.
The same is true now, and perhaps more than ever we must diligently compare what we’re told with what we can identify as real and true. I believe whole-heartedly that paying that kind of attention to all of this “information” being thrown about will lead to a realization of how much of it is complete nonsense and opposes all accuracy and legitimacy, and in many cases is downright illogical.
I’m reminded also of the “wolf in sheep’s clothing” concept, which is also Biblical. Make no mistake, this false-but-true “information” we’re fed won’t sound ugly or bad on the surface, but rather be sugar-coated with beautiful wording that draws the unsuspecting recipient in like a moth to a flame.
What’s more, this all-too-common stuff is also often laced with cleverly masked threats to invoke fear when fear is 100-percent undue. And don’t fool yourself into thinking that’s not cold and calculated.
Why stop with lying when a good, solid threat can be added?
Sure, there are fringe information sources that take this idea way over the top whose leaders claim that literally everything we’ve ever been told is a lie. I don’t agree with that at all, but I do believe a large percentage of what we’ve been told for centuries has been untrue, and the dissemination of lies disguised as truth is more rampant now than ever before.
Anyway, we can’t simply accept every “spirit” these days because there is falsehood veiled in many. Yep, the wolves are busy and it’s up to us to discern what they’re up to.
Doug Davison is a writer, photographer and newsroom assistant for the Houston Herald. Email: ddavison@houstonherald.com.
