3 ms·

The real issue isn't the 'false' stories. Most 'false' stories are from hyper-partisan outlets that don't really matter. The mainstream media rarely writes 'fal

The real issue isn't the 'false' stories. Most 'false' stories are from hyper-partisan outlets that don't really matter. The mainstream media rarely writes 'false' stories, because lying is dumb. Lying creates blowback, which harms your credibility and hamstrings your ability to shape the narrative. If your goal is to mislead, the best path to tell the truth, the politically convenient truth, but never the whole truth. That way, folks like you can (plausibly!) ask "where's the lie?" Well, it's hard to put my finger on a specific lie. Even if I did, you'd (plausibly!) argue "That's just one article!" Luckily, there are plenty of hard data out there about how the American people have been misled. One great example is the Trump tax cuts. 64% of Americans got a tax cut, of whom 40% were convinced that they did not! [0] Our media is incapable of informing the people about a matter of simple arithmetic! [0]https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/14/business/economy/income-tax-cut.html https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/14/business/economy/income-t...

triceratops 6y ago
> One great example is the Trump tax cuts. 64% of Americans got a tax cut, of whom 40% were convinced that they did not! 40% of 64% is 25%, which doesn't sound like a lot. That's a lot better than how many people don't know that Obamacare and the ACA are the same thing[1]. You're also not mentioning that the individual tax cuts begin to phase out in 2021, and end completely in 2025. Whereas the corporate tax cuts are permanent (until the next tax act, at least).[2] So some of those people may have been taking future taxes into account too (unlikely, but possible). 1. https://www.businessinsider.com/poll-obamacare-affordable-care-act-name-2017-2 https://www.businessinsider.com/poll-obamacare-affordable-ca... 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Cuts_and_Jobs_Act_of_2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Cuts_and_Jobs_Act_of_2017

triceratops 6y ago

> One great example is the Trump tax cuts. 64% of Americans got a tax cut, of whom 40% were convinced that they did not! 40% of 64% is 25%, which doesn't sound like a lot. That's a lot better than how many people don't know that Obamacare and the ACA are the same thing[1]. You're also not mentioning that the individual tax cuts begin to phase out in 2021, and end completely in 2025. Whereas the corporate tax cuts are permanent (until the next tax act, at least).[2] So some of those people may have been taking future taxes into account too (unlikely, but possible). 1. https://www.businessinsider.com/poll-obamacare-affordable-care-act-name-2017-2 https://www.businessinsider.com/poll-obamacare-affordable-ca... 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Cuts_and_Jobs_Act_of_2017 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Cuts_and_Jobs_Act_of_2017