The internet is dangerous.
Anybody with internet access can pretty much create any kind of website and have an instant platform to say anything.
Whether it’s true or otherwise.
And if they’re SEO adept, can actually get eyes.
No fact-checking, no vetting, no editors, just sweaty fingers on a plastic keyboard projecting into the cyber-universe.
And because it shows up in your search results, you believe it.
We have trusted newspapers and broadcast news because that has been the standard. At least for the Boomers.
For me…Walter Cronkite.
No opinions, no leanings, no conjecture.
Just the facts.
But the advent of the internet has subjugated the facts.
And now anyone can say anything, and be believed.
Algorithm evolution has only compounded the problem.
Your personal search results are a product of the searches you have made and the keywords you used.
In an effort to bring you relevant information, you are also subjected to websites that may or may not be reputable.
The search results do not vet, do not fact check, do not verify anything.
It’s up to you.
It’s really easy to want to believe a post/article that speaks to your beliefs.
It’s a little harder to vet. Or at least, it’s a little more time consuming to verify the source of the information.
Especially if you want to believe it.
Please do.
The internet has changed how we communicate.
Which is actually a good thing.
We have access to people we’d never had access to before.
We can actually interact with them.
That’s a good thing.
I’ve had conversations with people all over the world because of the internet.
Learning about other cultures and then having the opportunity to interact, to converse, is amazing.
And, you have to be smart about it.
There is very little in place to protect you against bad actors, or those whose aim is to profit from your ignorance.