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I chalk it up to the fact that Silicon Valley companies have now reached the scale where they have reached the same level of public scrutiny and manufactured di

I chalk it up to the fact that Silicon Valley companies have now reached the scale where they have reached the same level of public scrutiny and manufactured disdain by the media. I worked at a tech company in the valley that has gotten a lot of negative attention. Some criticism was deserved but a lot of stuff was blown completely out of proportion to the point where people believed outright falsehoods and these people would fuel the fire of negative criticism of the company I worked for. Being on the inside, I could see how much was well deserved criticism and how much were lies. With that in mind, I think Monsanto deserves criticism, but I also maintain as healthy a skepticism of the of the critics claim of danger as monsantos claim of safety. Because of this I've often found myself trying to explore the contrarian side if I feel one side has become excessively hyperbolic. With all that said, I'm sure I'm not alone in having this experience and that others explore this contrarian angle for the same reason. I would also add that in this thread, I find seeing strong arguments on both sides refreshing. It provides a broad range of aspects to consider for and against its usage and challenges me to do my own research to determine the veracity of the claims on both sides.

epistasis 10y ago
This is exactly it, for me. Having grown up in farm country, I know that Monsanto is just one of many similar players in the game, yet only Monsanto gets the criticism. Apple bore the brunt of media narratives on Chinese working conditions, but a small amount of poking shows a whole host of tech companies with identical or worse practices. It's a symbol of an entire industry, and the disconnect between the media narrative and the reality is large. People are uncomfortable with how little they know about their food sources, just as they are uncomfortable about how technology is changing their lives. This sells a good story. There's some truth to parts of the narrative, but at the end of the day if there's a bunch of articles on that narrative, the most accurate one is not likely to be the most read, the most read will be the one with the largest reach by its headline hook and the one that prompts people to share it the most.

epistasis 10y ago

This is exactly it, for me. Having grown up in farm country, I know that Monsanto is just one of many similar players in the game, yet only Monsanto gets the criticism. Apple bore the brunt of media narratives on Chinese working conditions, but a small amount of poking shows a whole host of tech companies with identical or worse practices. It's a symbol of an entire industry, and the disconnect between the media narrative and the reality is large. People are uncomfortable with how little they know about their food sources, just as they are uncomfortable about how technology is changing their lives. This sells a good story. There's some truth to parts of the narrative, but at the end of the day if there's a bunch of articles on that narrative, the most accurate one is not likely to be the most read, the most read will be the one with the largest reach by its headline hook and the one that prompts people to share it the most.