No, the sub isn’t supposed to do anything that I want.
What the sub is supposed to do is remove content that is blatant misinformation, manipulation, and propaganda.
Actually, to be totally honest with you, I wouldn’t even really be upset with manipulation and propaganda. It’s really just the misinformation part that absolutely gets to me.
Stating untrue things as fact in order to propagate a political agenda is one of the most horrific things humans can do to other humans, because a lot of people will believe it. That’s a big part of why we’re in the situation we’re in now in America.
I’m not asking for a subreddit that simply removes opinions I disagree with. I’m asking for one that doesn’t allow demonstrably false claims to be presented as factual information, regardless of which political side they’re coming from.
Whoever made this might counter that it’s satire. Seems like satire is different than misinformation. Would you be opposed to the same image with mcdonalds logo saying “the mcdonalds restaurant next to the convention ran out of burgers all ordered by one customer, Trondald Dump”? Is that different? Am I supposed to believe that grinder went down because of closeted Republicans – seemed far fetched to me.
This is a meme sub after all… Is a meme sub where I should seek facts?
Satire is a very interesting concept, and I applaud you for bringing it up because I honestly hadn’t considered that angle.
I suppose the standard would have to be that the satire is either blatantly obvious or clearly associated with an account, creator, or community that is specifically known for satire. Beyond that, I’m not entirely sure how it should be handled. I think the moderators would have to use some degree of judgment and due diligence to determine whether something is genuinely satirical when the intent isn’t immediately obvious.
The bigger problem, though, is that places like this are exactly where misinformation tends to spread. The people most likely to fall for misinformation generally aren’t the same people who are going to seek out scientific papers or reliable sources to verify what they’ve been told. They’re often encountering the claim through a meme, a screenshot, or some other highly shareable piece of content.
And that’s exactly why I think these kinds of posts deserve scrutiny. It’s not necessarily that every misleading meme is going to convince someone, but these formats are incredibly effective at giving misinformation exposure to people who may have no reason to question it. The combination of a false claim, an authoritative looking presentation, and massive exposure is what makes misinformation particularly harmful.
No, the sub isn’t supposed to do anything that I want.
What the sub is supposed to do is remove content that is blatant misinformation, manipulation, and propaganda.
Actually, to be totally honest with you, I wouldn’t even really be upset with manipulation and propaganda. It’s really just the misinformation part that absolutely gets to me.
Stating untrue things as fact in order to propagate a political agenda is one of the most horrific things humans can do to other humans, because a lot of people will believe it. That’s a big part of why we’re in the situation we’re in now in America.
I’m not asking for a subreddit that simply removes opinions I disagree with. I’m asking for one that doesn’t allow demonstrably false claims to be presented as factual information, regardless of which political side they’re coming from.
Whoever made this might counter that it’s satire. Seems like satire is different than misinformation. Would you be opposed to the same image with mcdonalds logo saying “the mcdonalds restaurant next to the convention ran out of burgers all ordered by one customer, Trondald Dump”? Is that different? Am I supposed to believe that grinder went down because of closeted Republicans – seemed far fetched to me.
This is a meme sub after all… Is a meme sub where I should seek facts?
Satire is a very interesting concept, and I applaud you for bringing it up because I honestly hadn’t considered that angle.
I suppose the standard would have to be that the satire is either blatantly obvious or clearly associated with an account, creator, or community that is specifically known for satire. Beyond that, I’m not entirely sure how it should be handled. I think the moderators would have to use some degree of judgment and due diligence to determine whether something is genuinely satirical when the intent isn’t immediately obvious.
The bigger problem, though, is that places like this are exactly where misinformation tends to spread. The people most likely to fall for misinformation generally aren’t the same people who are going to seek out scientific papers or reliable sources to verify what they’ve been told. They’re often encountering the claim through a meme, a screenshot, or some other highly shareable piece of content.
And that’s exactly why I think these kinds of posts deserve scrutiny. It’s not necessarily that every misleading meme is going to convince someone, but these formats are incredibly effective at giving misinformation exposure to people who may have no reason to question it. The combination of a false claim, an authoritative looking presentation, and massive exposure is what makes misinformation particularly harmful.
Well stated!