How Your Politics Make you Easier to Mislead

Propagandists use our social and political ties to spread fake news:

Painting by Russ Mills ( listed for open use)

You have almost definitely spread a false idea without realizing it.

So have I. It’s not completely our fault. It’s due to a design flaw in humans. No matter our political leaning, the more powerful our political convictions, the stronger the desire we feel to believe information that confirms our belief systems.

That is to say, our political affiliations make us more susceptible to being fooled.

And those who spread misinformation are counting on that.

In the art of propagating ideas, the most useful participant is the one unaware that they are being misled.

We are much more likely to accept information as true if it comes from a source we view as trustworthy, and we tend to conform to the opinions of our perceived tribe; whether that tribe is political, social or religious.

We are hardwired to trust our community.

A story has more credibility, more staying power and propagates much faster if it is being shared by influential members within a community than it does when spread artificially by “bots.”