This conversation is closed. Start a new conversation
or join one »
Who do you trust more to help you understand world events, the press, politicians or your friends/family, or someone/something else? Why?
I would like to know who/what, the TED community trusts most to give them the news, information and knowledge they need to follow and understand major events, live their lives successfully, be connected in their communities, and more generally understand our world. What are the trade offs of these sources as you view them? Do you have time to think about it?
Closing Statement from Alisa Miller
Wow everyone. What a thoughtful set of postings -- Lindsay, special thanks to you for your ongoing comments and "facilitation" of the discussion. Excellent.
If I look across the responses, it seems the answer to "who we trust" to understand world events or topics that are global in nature is not an easy one. In our personal lives, the people we trust most are family and friends, but these people may not have the information or mastery we need. At the same time, there is great concern about a lack of transparency in our "news" and many have come to no longer trust of many information sources. So we need to curate on behalf of our own knowledge: a mix of family/friends, news and information sources, art music and culture, and other "lenses" too as we seek the truth of what is really going on in this interconnected world. New tools and services are emerging to help us with this effort. Your responses have inspired me. And at the end of June, I plan to launch a website, twitter feed, and Facebook page to continue this conversation, share tips and advice on how to better inform ourselves about the world through news and other content. I hope you might check it out. www.newsmakeover.com.
Showing single comment thread. View the full conversation.
Showing single comment thread. View the full conversation.
Guneet Narula
Yes, there is a lot of America every where. Sifting through so much information is difficult but as information technology and web development advance it is becoming easier and easier. Television is important. But only a small percentage of it, which generally gets lost in entertaining news broadcasts, highly manipulative advertising and redundant information. Consumerism has become a driving force in media..
But in all this, other mediums of expression and communication have taken a very important space in my life. Stories of individuals and experiences are very important to me. Doesn't matter if I find them through a book, a song or a movie.. there is abundant knowledge and wisdom that is worthy of my trust.
Lindsay Newland Bowker 50+
Guneet Narula
I don't particularly research certain subjects, issues or events, but I go about understand and gathering knowledge. There are somethings for me that are really important, more important than many other things. For instance, I generally do not care what our 'politicians' are saying or doing. Newspapers are filled with court orders, corruption charges, murders, scams and the rest. The Forbes rich list doesn't deserve much of my time.. in fact, it is not difficult to learn to differentiate the noise from the relevant information.
What I am more concerned about is why there are so many problems, so much suffering and apathy, despite advancing technology? What is wrong with our economics? How is social design evolving? Where are we going? What is my role? Answers to such questions are everywhere. Like, people on TED have many valuable insights for me..
The world wide web has sparked revolution in my mind and it seems to be never-ending - which is good I guess. So yes, the unrest in west asia is important. Oil is too, maybe not its cost.
Lindsay Newland Bowker 50+