Best Sites for Debunking Conspiracy Theories

[SouthernDukie]

In the midst of all that's happening in America and the rest of the world right now, I know I don't have to tell everyone that a large number of conspiracy theories go viral quickly. Between Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms, not to mention talk radio and other outlets for "news", crazy conspiracy stuff is propagated like never before. Hence the reason for this thread. I've always gone to Snopes as my anti-conspiracy theory site of choice, but are there others that might even be doing a better job? What's your go-to site for such information?

Apologies ahead of time if this has already been discussed at length elsewhere.

[bundabergdevil]

In the midst of all that's happening in America and the rest of the world right now, I know I don't have to tell everyone that a large number of conspiracy theories go viral quickly. Between Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms, not to mention talk radio and other outlets for "news", crazy conspiracy stuff is propagated like never before. Hence the reason for this thread. I've always gone to Snopes as my anti-conspiracy theory site of choice, but are there others that might even be doing a better job? What's your go-to site for such information?

Apologies ahead of time if this has already been discussed at length elsewhere.

DBR?

[cspan37421]

In this age of "alternative facts", just pointing to a site other than Snopes isn't necessarily going to move the needle for someone predisposed to believing conspiracy theories. I can see it now - "Well, you have your sources and I have mine. So there!" My opinion is that social media is poison. Almost literally, like in a brain chemistry sense. It is designed to feed the outrage machine (as a means to get you to engage with the platform), and participating in it is, IMO, a loser's game.

If you know any of these conspiracy-promoting folks IRL and have the funds and inclination to help them build good critical thinking skills, something like this book makes a good gift:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sk...niverse_(book)

subtitled: "How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake"

Quote that heads Ch 1:

"Scientific skepticism, a term first popularized by Carl Sagan, is an overall approach to knowledge that prefers beliefs and conclusions that are reliable and valid to ones that are comforting or convenient, and scientific skeptics therefore rigorously and openly apply the methods of science and reason to all empirical claims, especially their own. A scientific skeptic provisionally accepts a claim only in proportion to its support from valid logic and a fair and thorough assessment of available evidence. A skeptic also studies the pitfalls of human reason and the mechanisms of deception so as to avoid being deceived by others or themselves. Skepticism values method over any particular conclusion."

I like the last sentence especially. Science is a method, not a set of beliefs.

If someone's not open to reason and evidence, I'm not sure you can do anything for them.

[MChambers]

Here's an article listing eight sites worth of consideration, including Snopes: https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/true-5...king-websites/

[Wander]

DBR?

The first page of the COVID thread has a warning from a mod that criticizing the guy who created the bogus vaccines-autism stuff is too political for this board, so I think we should refrain from patting ourselves on the back too much.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

In this age of "alternative facts", just pointing to a site other than Snopes isn't necessarily going to move the needle for someone predisposed to believing conspiracy theories. I can see it now - "Well, you have your sources and I have mine. So there!" My opinion is that social media is poison. Almost literally, like in a brain chemistry sense. It is designed to feed the outrage machine (as a means to get you to engage with the platform), and participating in it is, IMO, a loser's game.

If you know any of these conspiracy-promoting folks IRL and have the funds and inclination to help them build good critical thinking skills, something like this book makes a good gift:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sk...niverse_(book)

subtitled: "How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake"

Quote that heads Ch 1:



I like the last sentence especially. Science is a method, not a set of beliefs.

If someone's not open to reason and evidence, I'm not sure you can do anything for them.

Well, there's "evaluating sources," and then there's "changing someone's mind."

I'm more than happy to evaluate sources for my own edification. I'm not interested in trying to convince conspiracy theorist that they are wrong. Life is too short. And conspiracy folks have a convenient answer for everything.

[rsvman]

I like snopes a lot. I don't personally do social media at all, but my wife does. Whenever she gets something that looks dubious, she sends the person who posted it to snopes.

[bundabergdevil]

The first page of the COVID thread has a warning from a mod that criticizing the guy who created the bogus vaccines-autism stuff is too political for this board, so I think we should refrain from patting ourselves on the back too much.

<slowly backs off your lawn>

[SouthernDukie]

Well, there's "evaluating sources," and then there's "changing someone's mind."

I'm more than happy to evaluate sources for my own edification. I'm not interested in trying to convince conspiracy theorist that they are wrong. Life is too short. And conspiracy folks have a convenient answer for everything.

Yes. Perhaps I should have been clearer in my initial post. I'm looking for legit sources for my own edification, not trying to persuade the conspiracy believers.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Yes. Perhaps I should have been clearer in my initial post. I'm looking for legit sources for my own edification, not trying to persuade the conspiracy believers.

Yeah. Good luck in converting anyone.

[SouthernDukie]

Yeah. Good luck in converting anyone.

Agreed. Gave that up a long time ago. I was just interested to see if there were any other solid sources that really kept up to date like Snopes.

[bundabergdevil]

Yeah. Good luck in converting anyone.

Yeah. Sometimes when I'm in a discussion and I like to ask, "When was the last time you changed your mind on anything significant in your life?" I include myself in that question because most of us don't really change our major views after they're developed even with the addition of new, credible evidence. Heck, a large portion of people don't even know the difference between what constitutes credible and not credible or may not even have the intellectual capacity or personal bandwidth to understand complex subjects at depths required for informed opinions.

[cspan37421]

Yeah. Sometimes when I'm in a discussion and I like to ask, "When was the last time you changed your mind on anything significant in your life?"

That's a really good question to ask. A similar one is, "What would it take for you to change your mind about X?" You'll find that for a lot of people, the answer is, nothing could change their minds. And that's when you're not in the realm where evidence and reason has any sway.

IIRC some research indicates that we tend to make emotional decisions first and then justify them with evidence and reason (some might not even go that far). That's why we have to turn the questions on ourselves as well, to guard against cherry-picking data or ignoring sound arguments that go against our preferred view. It's not easy but you have to try.

[rsvman]

Snopes is still really good for when an email is going around that is bogus. You can ususally find the email or one similar to it, and learn its origin and whether there is any truth to it.

[elvis14]

There are two things I Google quite often. The first is simple "fact check xxx". This will often lead me to Snopes and similar sites. Sometimes it's good to hear from multiple sources. Speaking of sources, the second search I often do "media bias xxx" which can tell me what kind of bias I can expect from sites (and its record of truth).

Sometimes people get annoyed with me on Facebook after they post some ridiculous meme or link, I'll just reply with a link to Snopes or another fact checking site debunking their biased, nonsensical post.

[PackMan97]

There is no point in debunking conspiracy theories. Most conspiracy theorists are not debunkable. It matters not what proof or evidence you have, it's been fabricated, manufactured or just another lie told by the [insert adjective] media.

I one worked with a guy who could prove that the government blew up the twin towers on 9/11 because he saw a youtube video of a guy dropping a bowling bowl on some homemade glass towers. I kid you not. How are you supposed to argue that? I just ignored him. Half the time he was so crazy and out there with his theories that I think he was just trolling people, but I never saw him break character, so I'm not really sure. Either way, I just ignore them.

[Wander]

There is no point in debunking conspiracy theories. Most conspiracy theorists are not debunkable. It matters not what proof or evidence you have, it's been fabricated, manufactured or just another lie told by the [insert adjective] media.

I one worked with a guy who could prove that the government blew up the twin towers on 9/11 because he saw a youtube video of a guy dropping a bowling bowl on some homemade glass towers. I kid you not. How are you supposed to argue that? I just ignored him. Half the time he was so crazy and out there with his theories that I think he was just trolling people, but I never saw him break character, so I'm not really sure. Either way, I just ignore them.

I mostly agree with you, but:

beliefs.jpg

[OldPhiKap]

There is no point in debunking conspiracy theories. Most conspiracy theorists are not debunkable.

That's just what the Illuminati want you to think.

[elvis14]

There is no point in debunking conspiracy theories. Most conspiracy theorists are not debunkable. It matters not what proof or evidence you have, it's been fabricated, manufactured or just another lie told by the [insert adjective] media.

In my personal experience I have found this not to be true. Many times the people posting these things are not so much true conspiracy theorists, just lazy. They don't check out stuff, they see something that they think makes a point they want to make and they 'share' it. I've had quite a few friends delete posts after I've shown them the truth.

[bundabergdevil]

In my personal experience I have found this not to be true. Many times the people posting these things are not so much true conspiracy theorists, just lazy. They don't check out stuff, they see something that they think makes a point they want to make and they 'share' it. I've had quite a few friends delete posts after I've shown them the truth.

It sounds like you are Facebook friends with all my family over 60.