Truth-Seeking in the Age of Misinformation and Outright Lies

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“I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on I can’t believe you.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche

Daily, our ability to trust is eroded, since the words that issue forth from people who are ‘supposed’ to be truthtellers are intentionally erroneous, meant to deceive, to perpetuate a specific agenda. I shake my head in bewilderment when I hear about people who cheat, steal, lie, and cause harm with little concern about the impact of what they say and do on the lives of others. If their needs are met, empathy flies out the window on cracked black leather wicked wings.

In our interpersonal lives, parents, children, partners, and friends prevaricate. The denials of taking the cookie from the cookie jar while being caught with a hand stuck in it and chocolate smeared across faces has become commonplace. Are folks in such denial—so blinded by their own desires—that they truly believe they won’t be caught, and their deeds brought into the light of day with consequences levied?

The Oxford Dictionary added the term post-truth to its list of new words for 2016. It is described as verbiage that appeals to emotion, rather than fact; meant to convince people that something is so, if it sounds like it could potentially be so. False news has been making headlines at an alarming rate. One sad statement that has been accepted as long as people have been running for office, is that “politicians lie.” The more outrageous the lie, the more some listeners, readers or viewers are willing to accept it as fact. Perhaps those who perpetuate the fabrications have themselves convinced that they are indeed true. Although some might fit into the category of a pathological liar, more often, the actions are primarily for immediate gain.

Political commentator, Stephen Colbert introduced the concept of truthiness in 2005, perhaps little realizing how prescient it was. While we may laugh at the segment on The Colbert Report, it speaks volumes about the state of affairs that exists 11 years later.

The current occupant of the Oval Office has turned dissembling into an art form. According to a Brookings Institution story, entitled, Trump’s Lies Corrode Democracy:

Whether consciously intended or not, Trump’s policy and political lies can have a significant impact on public opinion, particularly with those who are favorably disposed toward him. Systematic research in psychology and political science has demonstrated that once “misinformation” is initially encoded in a person’s mind, it is very difficult to change perceptions through credible corrections. In fact, attempted corrections often reinforce the initial misinformation.

Although there are still people who trust his word over that of what he calls, ‘the fake media,’ their faith in him is diminishing.

My parents instilled in me the importance of truth-telling. Somehow, they always knew if I was lying. The joke was, that when I was caught (and I don’t even recall all these years later what I had fibbed about), I would say with a give-away look on my face, “Honest I didn’t.” Not sure how I learned to cross my fingers behind my back as a ‘pass’ so that untruths didn’t count. I might have seen it on a cartoon and figured if the characters could get away with it, I could too.

When my son was young and he would lie about something he had done, my ‘spidey sense’ would buzz and I would suggest that we play a game that I called video camera truth by which I would call him on his stuff. It didn’t take long for him to admit what had transpired. We could then get down to the nitty-gritty; what it was that had him dissembling. Usually, it was that he wanted to do something that he thought he wouldn’t be permitted to do, so he would be what we would refer to as ‘sneaky’. I reminded him that he would always be caught, so it would be a better use of his creativity to ‘do the right thing’. For this parent, helping my child cultivate conscience is an important value. One of my intentions for him was that he be ‘a man of integrity’. He is now a happy, successful and honest adult.

I teach the same technique to clients to use with family and friends and to keep themselves ethical. I practice it daily as I ‘take my own inventory,’ to keep myself on the path of integrity.

According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, children and adults lie for similar reasons: to get out of trouble, for personal gain, to impress or protect someone, or to be polite.

Politicians may very well be children in adult bodies who desire to convince constituents that their take on the world is preferable and they will apply their charisma and communication skills to dissemble.

Often, we accept what we want to believe. In an article entitled “20 cognitive biases that screw up your decisions,” authors Samantha Lee and Shana Lebowitz explain the impact of pre-conceived notions on the choices we make. Some of them include:

Bandwagon effect: Believing in information because others do
Confirmation bias: Taking in data that validates what one already accepts as truth
Ostrich effect: Burying one’s head in the sand and ignoring what is evident
Placebo effect: If someone believes something will work, then it has a greater likelihood of doing so

Spiritual teacher and author, don Miguel Ruiz formulated the Four Agreements, which is a good guide for life, in general, and speaks specifically about the importance of truth-telling. He contends that as children, we take on the presented ‘reality’ of the adults around us. If they speak from their own limiting beliefs and attempt to cast them on us, we often accept them as valid.

They are as follows:

1. Be impeccable with your word.
2. Don’t take anything personally.
3. Don’t make assumptions.
4. Always do your best.

The first is the most important one to address for our purposes. Ruiz describes it in this way, “Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the Word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your Word in the direction of truth and love.”

I would love to see world leaders presented with a copy of this tiny but mighty book even prior to their first day in office?

The first would keep them honest, so that at the end of the day, they could look at the person in the mirror and know that they told the truth and not some distorted version.
The second would help them keep ego in check. Often, it is in attempt to protect image and facade that induces people to lie.
The third would have them asking questions and really listening; not to retort, but to understand the perspective of another. When we make assumptions, we believe that this is truth and act in ways based on distortions.
The fourth would encourage them to put their heart and soul into their job. If people are ‘all in,’ there is no need to create a false perception of reality.

Vet your news sources and ask if you are an informed consumer of information, without swallowing what you are fed in one gulp. Check out legitimate news sources, rather than believing what is read on social media or overtly biased sites or broadcasts. Use discernment. Google Trends indicates a steep upswing in fact-checking in the past year. Don’t perpetuate rumor and innuendo. There are farcical news sites, like The Onion that are purely ‘infotainment’ and not to be taken seriously.

Search your own conscience and ask if truth is expendable and if you want it to be on the endangered species list. Then think it, feel it, state it and put it into conscious action, lest it die.

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