Information Literacy, the complexity of reliable information. In todays world where freedom of speech is heavily used on the internet, we have to think to ourselves, "Can we really trust this opinion or information?". Word on a certain object goes around fast these days and so does ones attention. One small miscommunication and the whole story of 'Little Red Riding Hood' is suddenly about fruit cakes. Society needs to be careful with what they are reading upon.
With websites such as Wikipedia and Blogger, anybody has the power of misconception. Even this post that i am writing about could be a lie, but i assure you this is completely truthful. Though the internet is a world of information and manipulation, society has come to terms that information sharing sites need control and limitations.
Wikipedia, a world famous information website where users have the ability to share knowledge on various topics to other users, is kind of like a world wide encyclopedia that is updated almost daily. After a certain incident where users would change various topic informations, tricking people into believing lies, the website agreed to have a "security" team of moderators and administrators. With such power watching over the site, shared information were once again truthful and reliable.
Though without evidence or some sort of power to watch over those who lie, just how exactly can we figure out if it's reliable or not?
We can't.
Only ones conscience can tell.
As Buddha once said "Believe Nothing, No Matter Who Said It, Not Even If I Said It, Unless It Agrees With Your Own Reason And Common Sense."
Posted by
mlacerna
4 comments:
Michael,
Good blog--I liked Buddha's quote!
There has been a lot of negative publicity recently about the endless information available today and its accuracy. Is it simply a case of “buyer beware?” Quick reference and general interest are two harmless reasons to surf the net. The internet allows us all to access information that can then lead to opportunity and further education. It becomes a problem when we do not further research other sources – personal contact, libraries, reliable web sites etc. Anyway - not being familiar with Buddhism I “googled“ this quote and found several other quotes that “work for me”.
The internet is being used daily to gather information on various topics. Most people are starting to reply more on the internet and the information it gives out. The reasons for this is because searching for information on the internet is quick and easy. People continuously falsify certain information on the internet that is believed by readers. The precision of the information should be closely looked upon regardless of what website it had come from.
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix the problem? I would be willing to pay an annual membership fee, similar to a library fee, that would allow me to access sites that have been confirmed as trustworthy. Organizations would have to pass a "credibility test" before their site would be available through this exlusive web service. The fees we pay would cover the cost. This would further segment web users and advertisers would have a new market to target.
The media, our teachers, friends and families are all educating us on how to use the internet properly. We are learning how to seperate the truth from the lies when it relates to information that really matters. The rest is just harmless entertainment - no different than alot of television shows and magazines we read today.
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