Conspiracy theories: Because we know a tiny sliver of the world, we accept what we can’t verify
In a recent series of studies, Sander van der Linden and colleagues conducted online surveys of more than 5,000 Americans from across the political spectrum, asking them to rate their political preferences and respond to questions that were developed by psychologists to measure conspiratorial thinking and paranoia. One survey item,...
Claims ‘Covid vaccination kills’ force medical journal editors to quit over ‘misrepresentation’ of data
Several respected virologists and vaccinologists have resigned as editors of the journal Vaccines to protest its June 24 publication of a peer-reviewed article that misuses data to conclude that “for three deaths prevented by vaccination, we have to accept two inflicted by vaccination.” Since Friday, at least six scientists...
In a post-truth world, synthetic media and photorealism are a boon to ‘fake news industry’
Some snapshots may look like people you’d know. Your daughter’s best friend from college, maybe? That guy from human resources at work? The emergency-room doctor who took care of your sprained ankle? One of the kids from down the street? Nope. All of these images are “deepfakes” – the nickname...
UN urged to speak out against Israeli violation of journalists’ rights in Palestine
Israel’s systematic targeting of journalists working in Palestine and its failure to properly investigate killings of media workers violates the rights to life and freedom of expression and may amount to war crimes, the International Federation of Journalists told the 47th Session of the UN’s Human Rights Council in Geneva....
Over-cautious Arsenal on verge of signing midfielder Lokonga, defender White
English Premier League perennial footdraggers in the English Premier League transfer market, Arsenal Football Club, have been forced to expand their options for a centre-back after the initial target, Ben White, was reported to be inching closer to a deal with London rivals Everton. However, as of Tuesday, there were...
Politics and conspiracy theories: A way for losers to channel their anger, close ranks and regroup
Conspiracy theories seem to meet psychological needs and can be almost impossible to eradicate. One remedy: Keep them from taking root in the first place. The United States of America was founded on a conspiracy theory. In the lead-up to the War of Independence, revolutionaries argued that a tax on...
Africa and poorest countries to wait until 2023 to get Covid vaccines – experts
Amid a Covid surge in Africa, vaccine promises from richer nations are not enough to bring an early end to the pandemic, experts say. They warn that most people in the poorest countries will need to wait another two years before they are vaccinated against Covid-19. Around 11 billion doses...
Horrors: African asylum seekers in Libyan detention camps ‘lucky to survive from Zintan’
The EU-backed Libyan Coast Guard has intercepted more than 13,000 asylum seekers and migrants at sea this year, preventing them from reaching Europe – already a greater number than in all of 2020. Those intercepted are returned to Libya and sent to detention centres where a well-documented cycle of extortion,...
Facebook supremacy: US federal court tosses out antitrust cases against Big Tech
What if nothing works? What if, after years of scholarship and journalism exposing the dominance, abrogation, duplicity, arrogance and incompetence of Facebook, none of the policy tools we have come to rely on to rein in corporations make any difference at all? We have to be prepared for just such...
Details of the rot in Zimbabwe’s mining industry spotlights how army keeps Zanu in power
A recently published report by international economic crimes investigations agency, The Sentry, has pinpointed involvement of a South African lawyer in Zimbabwe’s multibillion graft industry as instrumental in businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei’s dealings in the country’s gold, diamond, platinum, chrome and nickel mines. Th report falls short of calling Tagwirei, which...
