Now everyone can publish!

and therein lies the problem, because not everyone is an expert on the Internet. and so we have anti-vaxxers, climate change deniers and ... flat earthers!

“SCIENCE was no match for science’s greatest enemy: idiots.”

A little morsel of observational humour from one of the “Back In Black” segments of Trevor Noah’s The Daily Show on TV. This was said about anti-vaxxers, who are widely regarded as being the cause of the recent spread of measles in the United States, where the disease had been eradicated in 2000. A disease that is highly contagious, potentially deadly, and mostly rendered a non-issue by simply getting vaccinated.

But memes told these people that vaccinations were the real threat. What is going on?

It’s not just anti-vaxxers. With climate change, lay people debate the science of an issue that scientists concluded was caused by humans decades ago. This is an issue that has the potential to end our world as we know it. And we haven’t moved on it.

Or how about the less serious issue but equally ridiculous rise of people who think the earth is not round but in fact flat. The flat earthers! The moon landing was faked, they’ll cry. The photos from space are doctored, completely made up, they say. Completely ignoring that the evidence of Earth being round was discovered by the ancient Greeks using maths. But maths is boring to understand, I suppose.

In a Feb 19 article in British newspaper The Guardian (bit.ly/ star_flat), YouTube was blamed for the rise of flat earthers. People watching videos on alternative theories of the 9/11 terror attacks of 2001 were offered the idea that the Earth is, in fact, flat and happily watched the next nonsensical video offered up by some moron still living in his parents’ basement.

Look, the Internet is great. Everyone is a publisher. But ....

People are dumb. And the Internet exists and ... everyone is a publisher! Crap!

I suppose the death of respect for institutions of government and news organisations, and the myth of the maverick – pushed by tons of Hollywood films where the main character goes against the status quo and is glorified at the end – are to blame for these ridiculous beliefs.

Because why are people getting medical advice from Pinterest (anti-vaxxers), information on climate change from far right news sources, and science facts from YouTube?

Once again. Everyone is a publisher! A steady diet of entertainment media has told us the big organisations are not to be trusted, but in real life, that’s simply not true. What should we trust more? A report coming from BBC or from Gerry broadcasting his crackpot theories on YouTube from his closet ’cause, you know, his Mum is asleep and he’s trying to keep things quiet.

There is literally a universe of information at your fingertips and no reason to believe anything coming from one source. If something sounds interesting, unlikely, or goes against the grain, check it out with other sources. And if all the sources that tell you something are not professional news sources, start to question your sources.

Maybe we rewarded the idea that thinking critically and questioning things make you smart a little too much. Because questioning existing facts like “are vaccines good for you”, and “is climate change really happening”, is dangerous. (Believing that the world is flat just identifies you as the dumbest person at the dinner table. Yeah, wilful ignorance isn’t a good look.)

But clearly, these things have an impact.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion – but facts are still facts. And when your opinion goes against established facts, and your main evidence is a bunch of YouTube videos and memes from Pinterest, my opinion is that you’re an idiot.

And don’t take my word for it. Because yes, this is getting published in The Star, but this is an opinion piece based on fact. So check the facts. Go to sources that are vetted and checked and double checked and see what they have to say on the subject. Be open to the other side of things. The worst thing that happens is cognitive dissonance and people take up one opinion and dig in their heels against anything else.

And about being open: There was a time when I was really open to conspiracy theories. If nothing else just because I found them fun to think about.

I revelled in the idea that 9/11 was an inside job, that the moon landing was faked, but it never really made sense to me and the theories remained entertaining, like a movie, a form of momentary escape.

But now that I’ve seen how belief in these conspiracies has changed the lives of people close to me and how it’s now impacting policy decisions all over the world, I can no longer abide this stupidity.

Vaccines are good! Climate change is happening! The Earth is round!

Sigh.

Avid writer Jason Godfrey – who once was told to give the camera a ‘big smile, no teeth’ – has worked internationally for two decades as a model in fashion and continues to work as an actor and host in dramas, documentaries, and lifestyle programming. Write to him at star2@ thestar.com.my and check out his stuff at jasongodfrey.co.