Guest Author • Apr 28, 2017 •
By Paul Ralph, University of Auckland Have you seen some “tips to spot fake news” on your Facebook newsfeed recently? Over the past year, the social media company has been scrutinized for influencing the US presidential election by spreading fake news (propoganda). Obviously, the ability to spread completely made-up stories about politicians trafficking … Read More
Ken Perrott • Sep 09, 2016 •
Tactics used in anti-science and pseudoscience propaganda are essentially the same as used in political propaganda. Everyone has their own ideological and political starting points – and none of us are really rational, even when we think we are. So we shouldn’t be surprised to find we are fully in agreement with some people on one issue but on the opposite sides … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jul 21, 2015 •
This poster/internet meme is making the rounds at the moment. A “true believer” asked for my comments on it as he seemed to think its arguments amounted to “gospel truth.” So here are some comments: “Natural” vs “man-made” They are comparing … Continue reading → … Read More
Ken Perrott • Oct 08, 2014 •
The anti-fluoridation internet propaganda machine is currently promoting a shonky paper – partly in their attempts to discredit the Royal Society of NZ Review. The substitute they offer was promoted by them earlier this years and is being recycled. So I … Continue reading → … Read More
Ken Perrott • Sep 28, 2014 •
First – have a look at this satirical programme from Germany. It has English captions but is worth watching a few times for the subtleties. I have commented before about the information war going on around the Ukrainian conflict. It … Continue reading → … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jul 20, 2014 •
Abby Martin’s Statement on Downed Malaysian Plane & State Sponsored Militias I have been absolutely disgusted with the contradictory information coming out about the crash of the Malaysian airline in Eastern Ukraine. And with the way politicians have used it to … Continue reading → … Read More
Ken Perrott • Apr 30, 2014 •
Occasionally groups with an anti-science message will get hold of a ‘peer reviewed’ paper in a scientific journal which fits their message completely. They will promote it heavily as scientific ‘proof” for their message. This is currently happening with a paper published … Continue reading → … Read More
Siouxsie Wiles • Nov 17, 2010 •
I recently took my 4 year old daughter to see Disney’s Tinkerbell and the Great Fairy Rescue at the cinema. It was just after the NZ Skeptics annual conference which due to a lack of alternative arrangements she had been forced to attend (to be fair she had spent most of it sat at the back watching movies … Read More