Fake news and the pandemic of distrust

Iyer, Prakash Fake news and the pandemic of distrust. Teacher Plus. ISSN 0973-778

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Abstract

In the 2013 Hindi movie “Ankhon Dekhi”, the protagonist Rajesh Bauji has an epiphanous moment when he decides not to believe anything, or say anything, unless he knows it to be true from direct first-hand experience. He believes things can be known to be true only from direct experience, not if we hear it from someone else. He doesn’t choose not to believe others; he finds it difficult to rely on testimony as a source of truth. He brings into doubt even obvious things like the day of the week, the spherical shape of the earth, and the existence of places on earth we haven’t visited. Soon enough everyone finds it difficult to converse with him because he refuses to believe things they say unless he himself can experience the truth of what they are saying. While his attitude is fascinating (even entertaining), we also begin to empathize with the exasperation others feel towards him.

Item Type: Article
Authors: Iyer, Prakash
Document Language:
Language
English
Uncontrolled Keywords: Education, Information, Fake news
Subjects: Social sciences > Education
Full Text Status: None
URI: http://publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/id/eprint/3649
Publisher URL:

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