tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58628322024-03-13T06:40:27.256+00:00william watkin's blog (since 2003)Philosophy of the news Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.comBlogger283125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-55883033311478225832019-02-18T11:54:00.003+00:002019-02-18T11:54:08.883+00:00
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px 0px 10.66px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The DCMS report shows them to be well-meaning, but digitally
illiterate</span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px 0px 10.66px;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The long awaited DCMS report on Fake News and social media
was published today, and while the tone of its criticisms of Facebook is notable
in its harshness, overall the report is rather bland and toothless.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>While the recommendations may give parliament
more regulatory rights over social media, the report also shows a disturbing
lack of understanding of what Facebook is, its business model, its role in our
lives and its participation in our democracy.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="margin: 0px;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px 0px 10.66px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The list of findings includes things like Mark Zuckerberg
isn’t very nice, Russians are dodgy, multi-billion companies can’t be trusted
to regulate themselves, and Brexit was hacked using secret funds.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>Really!?<span style="margin: 0px;">
</span>I am shocked.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>Meanwhile Facebook
comes out of it all as a company who will sell your private data at the drop of
a hat, or the click of a like, but when asked to share information about their
algorithms, data sharing politics or just the names behind ongoing campaigns to
skew the result of the 2016 Referendum, it becomes all coy and secretive.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px 0px 10.66px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As for the regulations, they will be ineffective in my
opinion because the committee is made up of people who don’t get social media
and think they can just regulate it into a version of mainstream media.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>After 18 months of searching, they have
failed to see what is right in front of their eyes, Facebook is not a product
failing its customers, WE the customers are the product.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>If you want to regulate Facebook then what
this means is that are going to have to regulate its users, something Facebook’s
algorithms will always be more capable of then any parliamentary body.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div style="margin: 0px 0px 10.66px;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">One interesting aspect of the report did interest me
however, right at the boring bottom of the Guardian’s list.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>The committee recommends the digital literacy
should be taught at schools.<span style="margin: 0px;"> </span>I agree, I
have been teaching digital literacy for years and my first recommendation, all
the members of the DCMS should take my course because at present, well-meaning through
they are, they appear woefully digitally illiterate.</span></div>
<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-66635437700840838022019-01-24T11:04:00.001+00:002019-01-24T11:04:40.610+00:00What we learnt from Cambridge Analytica, Really!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sb_iFiUUX4A" width="480"></iframe><br /><br />
<br /><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #0a0a0a; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: Roboto,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">Just over half a year after the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke, the ongoing investigations into the criminal and nondemocratic role that illegal data-harvesting and targeted political ads have had on the election of Trump, and of course Brexit rumble on. At the same time there is clear disagreement as to what degree companies like Cambridge Analytica in cahoots with the far right and the Russians really skewed recent elections. It is now clear that what they did was on the edges of legality, but does that mean to say it was wrong? And if CA did not elect Trump, then what is the real political significance of data-based campaigning? Prof. Watkin, as ever, thinks we may have fresh insights into the debate.</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-2592253936215061212019-01-07T11:24:00.001+00:002019-01-07T11:24:42.111+00:00Privacy through the ages<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GyeKcMZK8CE" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-3589717290529144762018-12-14T14:10:00.001+00:002018-12-14T14:10:42.223+00:00Even Santa Needs to be GDPR Approved These Days!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0WrGR-gqbO4" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-21207626229495265242018-07-04T16:30:00.001+01:002018-07-04T16:31:32.997+01:00Cambridge Analytica, Facebook and the Rise of NeoprivacyCheck out my latest piece at The Conversation: <a href="https://theconversation.com/cambridge-analytica-used-our-secrets-for-profit-the-same-data-could-be-used-for-public-good-98745" target="_blank">Cambridge Analytica used our secrets for profit – the same data could be used for public good </a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkArxtVdO5HbzowSuKgCaofc29eyKy7LEmw14LQbTi2WqoVN4n-ZpZ7aqtdAEkLxX99ujNwJJA_8UWcx6-1s2R2yriWoxKtGzoq0aKv9SkhVJOdmL9ko7pRDiGoKvdemgeoNbDdA/s1600/cambridge+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="317" data-original-width="500" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkArxtVdO5HbzowSuKgCaofc29eyKy7LEmw14LQbTi2WqoVN4n-ZpZ7aqtdAEkLxX99ujNwJJA_8UWcx6-1s2R2yriWoxKtGzoq0aKv9SkhVJOdmL9ko7pRDiGoKvdemgeoNbDdA/s320/cambridge+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-4550313430863084442018-07-04T14:51:00.001+01:002018-07-04T14:51:17.081+01:00GRENFELL Tower Fire Explainer<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KgTJyFcDbeo" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-28092094982391907172018-06-27T08:44:00.001+01:002018-06-27T08:44:05.116+01:00Cambridge Analytica and Neoprivacy<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gHJMBSEUasY" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-51068020992789188312018-06-26T16:02:00.001+01:002018-06-26T16:02:37.545+01:00Cambridge Analytica / Kogan Explainer<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K0Bf-J86kOQ" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-78569291300619894512018-06-23T11:38:00.005+01:002018-06-23T11:42:24.254+01:00Cambridge Analytica / Kogan ExplainerHi<br />
Here is my latest video explaining the whole Cambridge Analytica / Alexsandr Kogan data privacy and fakes news moral panic.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCmRlCNC2ISYqDxhfakWl-W0kv6vZh3wEyTRuNmjy1vtlOdE3btZOV7_-NYAk-FhFfwi0eTL7mRrWJ01OzifE0UMW7M7ID8KBm6hMtLOhopPX1IpyV54Jr8RskiqDL599VqUk6SA/s1600/ca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="604" data-original-width="1024" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCmRlCNC2ISYqDxhfakWl-W0kv6vZh3wEyTRuNmjy1vtlOdE3btZOV7_-NYAk-FhFfwi0eTL7mRrWJ01OzifE0UMW7M7ID8KBm6hMtLOhopPX1IpyV54Jr8RskiqDL599VqUk6SA/s400/ca.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://youtu.be/K0Bf-J86kOQ" target="_blank">Cambridge Analytica / Kogan Explainer Video</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-53225768889160156082018-06-14T11:19:00.001+01:002018-06-23T11:48:17.313+01:00The Grenfell Tower Murders<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaur-e8i0tLEM5I6AjBixf1K5pshMm0eyayRMfxN1df2YWP7F0XjBdtCACVLmoGaH1q4Ffbomfu9jxDohbWXOkpxYkGm90yjfBxEKY-oYyMWFwZtPpBp2zgFJ2YmJnpL5yShKRWg/s1600/shutterstock_769100185.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaur-e8i0tLEM5I6AjBixf1K5pshMm0eyayRMfxN1df2YWP7F0XjBdtCACVLmoGaH1q4Ffbomfu9jxDohbWXOkpxYkGm90yjfBxEKY-oYyMWFwZtPpBp2zgFJ2YmJnpL5yShKRWg/s400/shutterstock_769100185.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<b>The 72 victims of Grenfell Tower Fire were murdered, victims of the violence of neglect. Here is the proof.</b></h2>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
A year ago, a fire started on the fourth floor of Grenfell
Tower, due to a faulty appliance. The
fire spread quickly up the side of the building because the tower had been
refurbished in 2016. Flammable cladding
had been added to the exterior building as part of an £8 million refit which
appears to have primarily made the tower more cosmetically pleasing. The money was not spent on improving fire
safety within the building, it would appear, a cause for concern for residents’
groups for years. The initial cladding that was to be used is not illegal in
the UK but its use is restricted in other countries. To save costs a cheaper version was
eventually attached to the building, a more flammable version. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Once the fire caught, residents were advised to stay in
their flats. In 99% of all cases this is
the best advice, because flats are designed to be “fire resistant boxes”
surrounded by the fire-resistant block itself.
Tragically, due to the cladding, this was the wrong advice. The flammable centre of the cladding, plus
the gaps between the cladding and the wall acting effectively as a flue drawing
up air behind the cladding, causing the fire to shoot rapidly up the sides of
the building with a speed many described as totally unexpected and
unprecedented. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
During the fire 72 people died, including a number of young
people and children. The flats were
mostly occupied by the poorer members of Kensington Borough, one of the
wealthiest places in the world.
Immediately after the fire, Theresa May was slow to respond and
reluctant to go to the scene of the disaster because the anger against her and
the government as palpable. This did
nothing but confirm a general feeling among the survivors that the government
didn’t care about them because they were not rich or powerful.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjczwtdampLbS2Z-yoFW6qnNxyVjTWCOakiFMBK1K1KfMNJz3OFe_k0t7yln4esfTonHL_VGKBiV5hUGKui6xa-zf5u83i0LLB-HUTS0HFBDnd9b1P4AvB3dzmDVX0u_DJ_p0Oiig/s1600/shutterstock_1069982126.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjczwtdampLbS2Z-yoFW6qnNxyVjTWCOakiFMBK1K1KfMNJz3OFe_k0t7yln4esfTonHL_VGKBiV5hUGKui6xa-zf5u83i0LLB-HUTS0HFBDnd9b1P4AvB3dzmDVX0u_DJ_p0Oiig/s400/shutterstock_1069982126.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rehousing of the 250 plus residents made homeless by the
fire was a fiasco.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although the borough
is full of unoccupied property, the council struggled to find the resources to
rehouse residents, some of which we sent out of the city, some hundreds of
miles away. Even now, a year later, many residents have not been permanently
rehoused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Meanwhile over a hundred other
tower block are clad in the same cladding as Grenfell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nothing as yet has been done to deal with
this issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The costs are
astronomical.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you took out a mortgage
on one of these flats, you are now in severe negative equity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lives of ordinary people have effectively
been ruined around the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
have also expressed the psychological impact of living in buildings where they
know they and their children are not safe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After the
fire the anger of the residents was palpable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They stormed the offices of the local council.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Speaking to the media they explained their
battle to have their concerns heard by the developers and council about fire
safety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had a clear sense that
their lives were seen as worth less than the financial benefits of development
and the financial burdens of improving safety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Around the country many spoke out about the belief that the victims of
Grenfell were victims not of fire, but of neglect, exclusion and poverty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Speaking of the greed and dismissive nature of
the planners and council members alike, it was not uncommon to hear the
accusation “murderers!” Understandable in the circumstances; emotions were
running high.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But if the residents of Grenfell were victims, victims of
neglect and disregard for the value of their lives and those of their family,
can this neglect be seen as a form of violence directed against them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t it going too far to suggest the 72 dead
were murdered by cost-cutting and profiteering?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t think so.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgri6NZD3VGGe7tXXsMZUV2pcyZ8udlkCahAyi3927SQhPt6u0_FQ_OFz6tcZbpG6PELmSsh6zYjFBiJL3zrY3A6pkBYtMINNfnwWg5nN6whOHW9OyN4AJNEonap8OM1gHVOUVKIQ/s1600/foucault-angry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="280" data-original-width="400" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgri6NZD3VGGe7tXXsMZUV2pcyZ8udlkCahAyi3927SQhPt6u0_FQ_OFz6tcZbpG6PELmSsh6zYjFBiJL3zrY3A6pkBYtMINNfnwWg5nN6whOHW9OyN4AJNEonap8OM1gHVOUVKIQ/s400/foucault-angry.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michel Foucault</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
In 1976 the French philosopher Michel Foucault gave a celebrated
lecture where he outlined a new theory of state power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead of a state ruling though threats to
life, he argued, modern states ruled by making promises about life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If ancient sovereign power made death or let
live, modern biopower, as he called it, made life or let die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the same time as presenting a new theory of power,
Foucault also effectively invented a new idea of violence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a state’s role is to protect the lives of
its citizens, and to enhance and prolong them, then any state that fails in
this duty, is committing an act of violence, the violence of exclusion and
neglect, the violence of letting die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
went as far as to call the neglect of life on the part of the state a form of
murder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
His reasoning was devastatingly simple. If the modern state
extends its power over its citizens by the promise of valuing their lives,
through protection against violence, longevity due to health care and risk
assessment-based legislation, if it regulates and surveills its citizens with
the argument that it is for their protection, then it has entered into a social
contract with them, with you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The state
basically argues I will take from rights, and cash, and privacy, and power, in
return for the promise of protection of your life, and enhancement of your
living.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is certainly the promise of
social housing in the capital.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If then the state’s job is to make life, to make your life
safe and worth living right up until your dying breath, then when it lets you
die, here through short-term profit and the disregard of the voices of the
poor, then it has, by definition, killed you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not through direct action, as used to be the case centuries ago when
despots and torturers ruled the land, but through indirect inaction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Letting someone die, when you have a moral
and legal responsibility to keep them alive, is already a form of manslaughter.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So it is far from outlandish to suggest
that Grenfell was murder?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1K6IGbh1ENpqf3XD7mFvZfl_RsyMilAg4E5tbGoviwWvlp8hYyGyjoRscozyviLCvMGvVUAfNyOu8kSW216HkZlkhHSdQPACkVkuQS9UTwvQcBh1vufXnLIvyn7jDg1kzX7Y93A/s1600/shutterstock_663318136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1K6IGbh1ENpqf3XD7mFvZfl_RsyMilAg4E5tbGoviwWvlp8hYyGyjoRscozyviLCvMGvVUAfNyOu8kSW216HkZlkhHSdQPACkVkuQS9UTwvQcBh1vufXnLIvyn7jDg1kzX7Y93A/s400/shutterstock_663318136.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
A year after Grenfell, while many commentators speak of the
neglect of the victims and the survivors, few would agree with many of the
survivors that the 72 dead murdered, perhaps viewing this as overly emotive,
too extreme.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet on Foucault’s terms the
violence of exclusion and neglect on the part of a state whose power is based
on the promise of protection and enhancement of the life of its citizens
resulted in precisely that: the murder of neglect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But if this is so, what purpose is served by calling
Grenfell murder, rather than an unfortunate accident?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Naturally one outcome is prosecution, but no
one is going to be prosecuted for murder, or even manslaughter it would
seem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why does it matter that we call it murder rather than
manslaughter?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because murder implies
intent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did the developers and council
intend to kill the residents?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No but
that is not how the logic of what Foucault calls biopower works.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The intent of a biopolitical state is the
intent to make live, so the active disregard of that intent is, logically, the
intent of no intention to protect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
then is murder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Calling it murder also makes the political point more
powerfully.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wealthy of London town,
and the cronyism that serves and supports them, is aggressively at the expense
of the ability of poor people to be able to live normal, safe lives. They are
increasingly forced into substandard rented accommodation that, due to lack of
real regulation, is often dangerous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or
made to live in tower blocks which then have to be beautified by cladding to
enhance the views of the mansion that overlook them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Leading to the lethal, cheaper cladding
option, to maximise profit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The money that should have been spent on vouchsafing the
lives of the residents od Grenfell, was instead spent adding value to the
property and to the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Money that
could be used to make live, was instead squandered and the result was 72 people
we left to die, were let die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
the murder of neglect.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Grenfell needs to be a turning point in how the poor are
housed in this country. But evidence shows that already lessons learnt are
being ignored, those who are culpable are being protected, ex-residents are not
being looked after and meanwhile over a hundred tinder boxes containing tens of
thousands of ordinary souls, are just waiting for the next spark to set them
off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So yes, accusations of murder were
initially emotions boiling over, but on sober reflection, with just a little
bit of help from one of the world’s most respected thinkers, one year later, it
would appear they had a point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
murder of neglect is an invisible crime, most of the time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But Grenfell brought out into the open, and
each of those tower blocks around the land dressed with equity-enhancing but
life-threatening cladding, is just one more crime-scene waiting to happen. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br /></div>
Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-53162071879789372302018-06-13T16:46:00.000+01:002018-06-13T17:13:52.842+01:00Cambridge Analytica Aren't to Blame for Data Theft, You Are!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbzCpzlPC-Yq-HsBEs3GCcrpB2fNgZXQ0tphuNUx_uJp2D6bXZ72JfeYlSUqg37jRCSXdNVdkfdLHafb0NJ1cLPYK61J4Jn-vIEuJncZdiupF4GlVPJbMPI-OVNau5i4wyYxqqA/s1600/shutterstock_415618876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="945" data-original-width="1600" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCbzCpzlPC-Yq-HsBEs3GCcrpB2fNgZXQ0tphuNUx_uJp2D6bXZ72JfeYlSUqg37jRCSXdNVdkfdLHafb0NJ1cLPYK61J4Jn-vIEuJncZdiupF4GlVPJbMPI-OVNau5i4wyYxqqA/s400/shutterstock_415618876.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<br /></div>
<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
It has been a busy time for Cambridge Analytica (CA) and the DCMS Fake News committee, what with whistle-blowers in the morning, and disgraced ex-CEO Nixes in the afternoon. Okay, only one Nix, but one is enough. As I listened last Wednesday to Nix give evidence in parliament I thought, for a moment, what if he is right, and all of this is a global conspiracy of the liberal left to find a data-goat for their own political impotency?</div>
<br />
<br />
Admittedly, it is clear CA has a somewhat murky business model, and that Nix doesn’t always tell the whole truth. But it is also obvious that his arch-nemesis and ex-employee Christopher Wylie is something of a self-publicist, that liberal Americans are looking to blame someone for Trump, that we liberals in the UK still cannot accept that Brexit will happen and yes, the MSM led by the Guardian are at war with the fake news industry.<br />
<br />
Sleazy Nix was at least classy enough to avoid using the term fake news but, in terms of CA’s involvement or not in Brexit, the behaviour of Channel 4 in trapping him in a boasting mood, and his accusations against former CA golden boy Wylie, that was effectively what he was suggesting. And for a second there I found myself actually feeling something like sympathy.<br />
It was at this moment that I needed to take a break, sip a flat white, eat a Pastel de Natas (or what used to be called a custard tart before that whole globalisation gig) and tried to work out who is faking who.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="merlin_139131006_7805237c-e487-42b6-92f5-eb675dda450e-articleLarge" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-998" height="265" src="https://heymillennials.files.wordpress.com/2018/06/merlin_139131006_7805237c-e487-42b6-92f5-eb675dda450e-articlelarge.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alexander Nix, Ex-CEO Cambridge Analytica</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
We come back to a fundamental problem I first began writing about back in 2017: What the hell is fake news? It is clear to me at least that the DCMS doesn’t quite know, and certainly the American senate has no idea based on their gentle chiding of a bemused Lord Zuckerberg of Palo Alto. All these middle-aged guys in suits trying to look relevant and angry, seem to think fake news is, well, news that is fake. Idiots! If nothing else I think that Nix’s blue streak while the C4 cameras were rolling, a thrillingly sordid roll-call of honey traps, the dark arts, a bit of blackmail and news fakery all in one gloriously unhealthy influence sandwich, helps us at least to better understand that the spreading of false news stories is really only the sticky tip of the digital dirty-tricks iceberg.<br />
<br />
For all the furore, in the end CA’s business model is simply about how to use data harvesting and manipulation to tailor content to target individual users to influence them in their decisions. While some of this content was certainly fake news stories during the election of Trump, most wasn’t, and anyway who is really to blame for this? The data harvested by CA was gathered by Facebook and given freely by the estimated 84 million users that made up the total data set of Cambridge assistant prof. Alexsandr Kogan of which about a quarter was made available to CA. Yes, that data was gathered by CA via Kogan in a nefarious manner, but it was also freely given or rather, it trod the new line that exists between the public and the private realm, or what we might call the rise in neoprivate data.<br />
<br />
All that you publish on Facebook is published. Philosophers call this a tautology, one that the folks out there still seem to struggle with. You said the things you said, you liked the things you liked, you shared the things you shared. Yet in your mind this data is somehow private or better becomes <em>privatised</em> when you think someone has taken it and used it without asking you, rather than shared it and thus raised your profile.<br />
<br />
But they didn’t need to ask you. Facebook’s laxness when it comes to such matters being a thing of terrible beauty. They ‘own’ the data, you gave it to them, so it is not private or public but neoprivate. In fact, they not only own the data but, some economists argue, they own you because you are their product not their consumer. You think that Facebook is a service to you, but Facebook is a business selling data and ad space to others based on its knowledge <em>of</em> you which you freely gave up so you could see how your sister in law’s new patio is getting on. Simple isn’t it? Isn’t it? Am I the only one here who can see what it going on!?<br />
<br />
Now consider the other side of the equation. According to Wylie, with the help of the possibly unwitting Kogan, CA got 320,000 or so individuals to filled out a psychological personality test for which they were paid a handsome fee of $4, which is more than I made from my blogging this year. They were also given access to a lovely little app, called thisismydigitallife, for which they paid nothing. It was this app. that then put their data in touch with that of their friends, around 160 per participant, and their friends’ friends and so on, up to 84 million users all of whom had given their permission, by proxy, to Facebook, to give their data to Kogan’s app.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS8zwwKq4KGNKDooLm5FSjX2LKSs7QG8BZXYS2JnFWF0qUqc4X0UGCJtwGQ6x6igC_5nqLsE9p0ts1zCkb4i5C0CEYVVPYNZS_qcNdqoREH641oy5jHesVwZJkB3fxOkYVE-lDew/s1600/wylie-U20573096666hMB--621x414%2540LiveMint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="414" data-original-width="621" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS8zwwKq4KGNKDooLm5FSjX2LKSs7QG8BZXYS2JnFWF0qUqc4X0UGCJtwGQ6x6igC_5nqLsE9p0ts1zCkb4i5C0CEYVVPYNZS_qcNdqoREH641oy5jHesVwZJkB3fxOkYVE-lDew/s400/wylie-U20573096666hMB--621x414%2540LiveMint.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christopher Wylie, he "broke facebook"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
For all the subterfuge here, there is also surely a perfectly balanced equation of narcissism and net illiteracy in all of this that as well that typifies the neoprivate realm. You agreed to talk about yourself by filling out a form, and then you agreed to talk about yourself some more, by clicking like or share. You really like to talk about yourself don’t you? Then you get upset when people actually start to listen. You gave your data, but you didn’t give your data for <em>that</em>! Didn’t you, <em>really?</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
Overall the whole CA scandal is, well, not much of a scandal. The DCMS is both a product and distributor of contemporary moral panic that unfortunately the MSM are party to because the new digital world of news is an existential threat to ‘real’ news, as much as it is a threat to democracy. Truth is, however much you may distrust Nix, the people who gave their data gave it freely. The geniuses who put together two kinds of data, old-school psyche tests and new-world data harvesting, simply had a really good idea which actually has immense potential for the future of more democratically informed decision making. The so-called fake news was actually almost entirely ads and who trusts them? And anyway, the data they ‘stole’ you had already given away to a third party, and it was that third party, Facebook in case you forgot about them, who then gave your data to other third parties. While the final cherry on the fake cake of news is that statistically it is not proven that the influence of fake news on the psyche of the electorate is in any way significant, although I bet the influence of adverts is.<br />
<br />
Which all boils down to the fact that the DCMS is barking up the wrong tree because they are trying regulate the unregulatable. And the Guardian and C4 are on the warpath when it comes to data harvesting and the manipulation of the voters. And Wylie is dramatically overclaiming and underselling when it comes to his version of the power of CA to influence or even destroy democracy. “We broke Facebook,” he claimed in one interview. And the Russians are nasty but they are also clever, and they will use CA data but they don’t need it. And Nix is clearly not very trustworthy, and likes to show off, and is perhaps a little too debonair for his own good. And Facebook are well, just quite evil and doing what comes naturally to them. And we have all been a little bit naïve and stupid and now the world is kind of a bit broken. And that, BTW, is our fault, but we don’t want to admit it.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_T5fE-nM1E0rnnPC1D_cgAHdNNQSEa_A6vb_DSfEn9Ms_kMRT1YS3XhiwmzBw1Ku-uXgcCWSfaehaJBW5VDyViwmlF0Iqlmy9jh1-hKKZhROO135gEYFyYHfnpbYqCxZe1i1EeQ/s1600/shutterstock_1049734193.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_T5fE-nM1E0rnnPC1D_cgAHdNNQSEa_A6vb_DSfEn9Ms_kMRT1YS3XhiwmzBw1Ku-uXgcCWSfaehaJBW5VDyViwmlF0Iqlmy9jh1-hKKZhROO135gEYFyYHfnpbYqCxZe1i1EeQ/s400/shutterstock_1049734193.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I wrote to the DCMS offering to put them right on the whole, you-don’t-actually-get-what-fake-news-even-is thing. If they had used my services, or if they are still interested, I do actually have a solution to all of this. Ban advertising on social media because in the end, for all the talk of data sets, click-bait and fake news, there is more than a whiskey and soda whiff of Madmen about the whole thing. The technology may be new, but the industry is still back in the fifties, as are the techniques. Trick consumers into buying things they don’t want by working out what their fears and desires are and tailoring your ads to that. The only difference is, in the old days you may have bought an electric meat carver you never used, while these days you bought Trump.Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-28941261849366772072017-06-22T20:50:00.001+01:002017-06-22T20:50:58.293+01:00Sovereign Violence: What do The Hunger Games, Minecraft and Lord of the ...<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v9UkgLUJMMs" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-82162266043641233292017-03-02T11:17:00.001+00:002017-03-02T11:17:12.560+00:00Creative Trolling Push-Backs Alt-Right<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/AHXjBpA9ylM" width="480"></iframe><br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-82165897800691813972017-02-22T14:28:00.001+00:002017-02-22T14:28:28.869+00:00JK Rowling, Piers Morgan, Milo Yiannopoulos: Week Of The Trolls<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UGl-C_hamrY" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-66563993198240459952017-02-14T14:26:00.001+00:002017-02-14T14:26:49.682+00:00Fake news 101, that Buzzfeed dossier<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NLgn1Tdz6kk" width="480"></iframe><br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-24132611722214147272017-02-11T17:47:00.001+00:002017-02-11T17:47:53.740+00:00Professor William Watkin (Brunel University) on Fake News<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7w7xFRwD-xg" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-16331181097892680592017-02-11T17:46:00.001+00:002017-02-11T17:46:51.013+00:00Meaning of Memes (very fun version)<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/44W5MQWmhLE" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-44538072621349475892017-01-12T09:51:00.001+00:002017-01-12T09:52:28.865+00:00Truth, is nothing more than a selfie of our own prejudices<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZICt2NnM37kW7ZakGwV_evy2qfUJ_agE1gLP0vMC8CY8zUOITsnU9bsehW27uXizuEfdBeMeBKrFDiFErs6Q-Qt0q0FcbC6HO36Q2jqPlcl2nsHw5q9-JGBiwcwz88kozmhWzRA/s1600/truth-is-nothing-6sbchc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZICt2NnM37kW7ZakGwV_evy2qfUJ_agE1gLP0vMC8CY8zUOITsnU9bsehW27uXizuEfdBeMeBKrFDiFErs6Q-Qt0q0FcbC6HO36Q2jqPlcl2nsHw5q9-JGBiwcwz88kozmhWzRA/s400/truth-is-nothing-6sbchc.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-60219056059831980232017-01-12T09:35:00.001+00:002017-01-12T09:52:18.317+00:00We are suffering from #Factobesity leaving us too exhausted to check facts anymore, so we just click 'Share'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXs-YrJFHeoUYfjPcGjS9tLvZmyMn0TK5xcKNP9bOjEINTo-B_xuUiuw0U70i0lqqetUQ2LjHkaFTSuFvKNL2RVhSFPA6ydDlNQ5fH78noPX_tuTv5fZHJ6Pdcyytu9BpHinVHsw/s1600/were-suffering-from-ufvmbq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXs-YrJFHeoUYfjPcGjS9tLvZmyMn0TK5xcKNP9bOjEINTo-B_xuUiuw0U70i0lqqetUQ2LjHkaFTSuFvKNL2RVhSFPA6ydDlNQ5fH78noPX_tuTv5fZHJ6Pdcyytu9BpHinVHsw/s400/were-suffering-from-ufvmbq.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-79073500428133506022017-01-12T09:20:00.001+00:002017-01-12T09:52:07.369+00:00Truths hold true, whatever the facts. Facts, however, let you down when a more attractive new fact comes along.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS-iEm439zz0miDlnzRtpC8eJ02gk8wrkHAIk_xRVo0_bmGG_exaPSC27JB12OsQM0eBG9aExYELmxs_JVUc6Sv3tAKL8JkCtvnjXivAtRBUAXS1UTU4GgbNQ2tMFHiRWjvzLl5g/s1600/truths-hold-true.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS-iEm439zz0miDlnzRtpC8eJ02gk8wrkHAIk_xRVo0_bmGG_exaPSC27JB12OsQM0eBG9aExYELmxs_JVUc6Sv3tAKL8JkCtvnjXivAtRBUAXS1UTU4GgbNQ2tMFHiRWjvzLl5g/s400/truths-hold-true.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-7444551617884318212017-01-12T09:04:00.002+00:002017-01-12T09:05:02.644+00:00THE TRUTH ABOUT POST-TRUTH...<div class="title-group" id="title-group" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0012px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="inner clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<h1 class="title" style="background: none 0px 0px repeat scroll rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-color: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); border-top-style: solid; border-width: 2px 0px 0px; clear: both; color: black; font-family: BebasNeueRegular, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 26px; font-stretch: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 32px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 4px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;">
...IT'S A BIT POST-TRUTHY</h1>
</div>
</div>
<div class="region region-content content nested grid24-16" id="content" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #555555; float: left; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12.0012px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 640px;">
<div class="content-inner inner clearfix" id="content-inner" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="block block-system" id="block-system-main" style="border: 0px; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 640px;">
<div class="gutter inner clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="content clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div about="/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth" class="node node-article node-promoted odd node-full clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" typeof="sioc:Item foaf:Document">
<div class="node-top region nested" id="node-top" style="border: 0px; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 640px;">
</div>
<div class="content" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="meta" style="border: 0px; clear: both; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="meta-inner clearfix" style="background: rgb(238, 238, 238); border: 1px solid rgb(215, 215, 215); font-family: inherit; font-size: 10.321px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 6px 6px 2px 4px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field-group-format group_meta group-meta field-group-simplediv" style="border: 0px; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 2px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field field-name-field-category-primary field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden" style="border: 0px; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field-items" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field-item even" style="border-bottom-style: initial; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-style: solid; border-top-style: initial; border-width: 0px 1px 0px 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; padding: 0px 5px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<a datatype="" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features" property="rdfs:label skos:prefLabel" style="border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" typeof="skos:Concept">FEATURES</a></div>
</div>
</div>
<span class="field field-name-field-published-date field-type-datetime field-label-hidden" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">JAN 11, 2017</span></div>
<span class="share-top" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br />
<div class="share-top" style="border: 0px; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="share-top" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style clearfix" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="addthis_button_print at300b" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth#" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 2px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;" title="Print"><span class="at-icon-wrapper" style="background-color: #738a8d; border: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 16px;"><svg alt="Print" class="at-icon at-icon-print" style="height: 16px; width: 16px;" title="Print" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M24.67 10.62h-2.86V7.49H10.82v3.12H7.95c-.5 0-.9.4-.9.9v7.66h3.77v1.31L15 24.66h6.81v-5.44h3.77v-7.7c-.01-.5-.41-.9-.91-.9zM11.88 8.56h8.86v2.06h-8.86V8.56zm10.98 9.18h-1.05v-2.1h-1.06v7.96H16.4c-1.58 0-.82-3.74-.82-3.74s-3.65.89-3.69-.78v-3.43h-1.06v2.06H9.77v-3.58h13.09v3.61zm.75-4.91c-.4 0-.72-.32-.72-.72s.32-.72.72-.72c.4 0 .72.32.72.72s-.32.72-.72.72zm-4.12 2.96h-6.1v1.06h6.1v-1.06zm-6.11 3.15h6.1v-1.06h-6.1v1.06z"></path></g></svg></span></a><a class="addthis_button_email at300b" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth#" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 2px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;" target="_blank" title="Email"><span class="at-icon-wrapper" style="background-color: #848484; border: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 16px;"><svg alt="Email" class="at-icon at-icon-email" style="height: 16px; width: 16px;" title="Email" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><g fill-rule="evenodd"></g><path d="M27 22.757c0 1.24-.988 2.243-2.19 2.243H7.19C5.98 25 5 23.994 5 22.757V13.67c0-.556.39-.773.855-.496l8.78 5.238c.782.467 1.95.467 2.73 0l8.78-5.238c.472-.28.855-.063.855.495v9.087z"></path><path d="M27 9.243C27 8.006 26.02 7 24.81 7H7.19C5.988 7 5 8.004 5 9.243v.465c0 .554.385 1.232.857 1.514l9.61 5.733c.267.16.8.16 1.067 0l9.61-5.733c.473-.283.856-.96.856-1.514v-.465z"></path></g></svg></span></a><a class="addthis_button_stumbleupon at300b" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth#" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 2px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;" target="_blank" title="StumbleUpon"><span class="at-icon-wrapper" style="background-color: #eb4924; border: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 16px;"><svg alt="StumbleUpon" class="at-icon at-icon-stumbleupon" style="height: 16px; width: 16px;" title="StumbleUpon" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M17.17 14.29l1.5.7 2.234-.665v-1.558C20.904 10.12 18.67 8 16 8c-2.658 0-4.904 2.108-4.904 4.732v7.104c0 .654-.527 1.17-1.17 1.17-.64 0-1.168-.516-1.168-1.17v-3.002H5v3.048c0 2.716 2.2 4.916 4.916 4.916 2.692 0 4.915-2.166 4.915-4.847v-7.01c0-.643.528-1.17 1.17-1.17.642 0 1.17.527 1.17 1.17v1.35zm6.072 2.544v3.15c0 .643-.527 1.16-1.17 1.16-.64 0-1.168-.517-1.168-1.16v-3.092l-2.234.664-1.5-.7v3.072c0 2.693 2.21 4.87 4.914 4.87 2.716 0 4.916-2.2 4.916-4.916v-3.048h-3.758z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></g></svg></span></a><a class="addthis_button_twitter at300b" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth#" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 2px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;" title="Twitter"><span class="at-icon-wrapper" style="background-color: #1da1f2; border: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 16px;"><svg alt="Twitter" class="at-icon at-icon-twitter" style="height: 16px; width: 16px;" title="Twitter" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M27.996 10.116c-.81.36-1.68.602-2.592.71a4.526 4.526 0 0 0 1.984-2.496 9.037 9.037 0 0 1-2.866 1.095 4.513 4.513 0 0 0-7.69 4.116 12.81 12.81 0 0 1-9.3-4.715 4.49 4.49 0 0 0-.612 2.27 4.51 4.51 0 0 0 2.008 3.755 4.495 4.495 0 0 1-2.044-.564v.057a4.515 4.515 0 0 0 3.62 4.425 4.52 4.52 0 0 1-2.04.077 4.517 4.517 0 0 0 4.217 3.134 9.055 9.055 0 0 1-5.604 1.93A9.18 9.18 0 0 1 6 23.85a12.773 12.773 0 0 0 6.918 2.027c8.3 0 12.84-6.876 12.84-12.84 0-.195-.005-.39-.014-.583a9.172 9.172 0 0 0 2.252-2.336" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></g></svg></span></a><a class="addthis_button_compact at300m" href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth#" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px 2px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><span class="at-icon-wrapper" style="background-color: #ff6550; border: 0px; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 16px; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 16px;"><svg alt="More" class="at-icon at-icon-addthis" style="height: 16px; width: 16px;" title="More" viewbox="0 0 32 32" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><path d="M18 14V8h-4v6H8v4h6v6h4v-6h6v-4h-6z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></g></svg></span></a><a class="addthis_button_facebook_like at300b" fb:like:layout="button_count" fb:like:width="50" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 23px; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"></a></span></span><br />
<div class="fb-like fb_iframe_widget" data-action="like" data-font="arial" data-height="25" data-href="http://www.bigissue.com/features/7255/william-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth" data-layout="button_count" data-send="false" data-share="true" data-show_faces="false" data-width="50" fb-iframe-plugin-query="action=like&app_id=172525162793917&container_width=0&font=arial&height=25&href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bigissue.com%2Ffeatures%2F7255%2Fwilliam-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth&layout=button_count&locale=en_US&sdk=joey&send=false&share=true&show_faces=false&width=50" fb-xfbml-state="rendered" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 25px; line-height: 10.321px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="share-top" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style clearfix" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="addthis_button_facebook_like at300b" fb:like:layout="button_count" fb:like:width="50" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 23px; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;"><span style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 20px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: justify; vertical-align: bottom; width: 125px;"><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" class="" frameborder="0" height="25px" name="f3622e4f86e8d38" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?action=like&app_id=172525162793917&channel=http%3A%2F%2Fstaticxx.facebook.com%2Fconnect%2Fxd_arbiter%2Fr%2FD6ZfFsLEB4F.js%3Fversion%3D42%23cb%3Df22e28456e6a218%26domain%3Dwww.bigissue.com%26origin%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.bigissue.com%252Ff187862d91a4968%26relation%3Dparent.parent&container_width=0&font=arial&height=25&href=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bigissue.com%2Ffeatures%2F7255%2Fwilliam-watkin-the-truth-about-post-truth&layout=button_count&locale=en_US&sdk=joey&send=false&share=true&show_faces=false&width=50" style="border-style: none; border-width: initial; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 20px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible; width: 125px;" title="fb:like Facebook Social Plugin" width="50px"></iframe></span></a></span></span></div>
<span class="share-top" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style clearfix" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="addthis_button_facebook_like at300b" fb:like:layout="button_count" fb:like:width="50" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 23px; line-height: initial; margin: 0px 0px 5px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 2px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;">
</a><div class="atclear" style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
</div>
</span></span></div>
<span class="share-top" style="border: 0px; display: block; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-height: 22px; min-width: 190px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
</span></div>
</div>
<div class="primary-image" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 8px 4px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<img src="http://cdn.bigissue.com/sites/bigissue/files/styles/bigissue_main_half/public/2/00//161109031839-donald-trump-november-9-2016-new-york-exlarge-169.jpg?itok=WnPoai27" height="168" style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border: 1px dotted rgb(221, 221, 221); box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 2px; vertical-align: baseline;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="300" /></div>
<div class="node-inline" style="border: 0px; clear: left; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="region region-node-inline node-inline" id="node-inline" style="border: 0px; clear: left; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="node-inline-inner inner clearfix" id="node-inline-inner" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="block block-dfp" id="block-dfp-skyscraper_right_1" style="border: 0px; float: right; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em 20px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline; width: 180px;">
<div class="gutter inner clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="content clearfix" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="dfp-tag-wrapper" id="dfp-ad-skyscraper_right_1-wrapper" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="dfp-tag-wrapper" data-google-query-id="CKGE_dWdvNECFU6pUQodW68HZw" id="dfp-ad-skyscraper_right_1" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div id="google_ads_iframe_/359/bigissue.com/features_0__container__" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: 600px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 160px;">
<iframe data-is-safeframe="true" frameborder="0" height="600" id="google_ads_iframe_/359/bigissue.com/features_0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="" scrolling="no" src="http://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-5/html/container.html#xpc=sf-gdn-exp-1&p=http%3A//www.bigissue.com" style="border-style: initial; border-width: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="3rd party ad content" width="160"></iframe></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<h2 class="short-teaser" style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Here's my piece for The Big Issue</h2>
<h2 class="short-teaser" style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
</h2>
<h2 class="short-teaser" style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Wordsmith and philosopher William Watkin lets the facts get in the way of a good story</h2>
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: 1.167em; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field-items" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<br />
Chav, Sudoku, bovvered, carbon footprint, credit crunch, simples, big society, squeezed middles, omnishambles, selfies, vape, tears of joy emoji: these are all the WOTYs since WOTYs began. The Word of the Year is an annual opportunity for the tweedy lexicographers of The Oxford English Dictionary to encapsulate the spirit of the year past. With each of these WOTYs we swell our vocabularies by learning the meaning of an additional word we all already knew the meaning of, so more of a communal one-word conversation on what this year was all about. And what was 2016 all about? Brexit, Trump and Lies, which the OED summarised as post-truth.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Of all WOTYs, post-truth seems the least frothy. “Post-truth,” they say, “is an adjective relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” That’s fine but, obviously, the meaning of post-truth depends on the meaning of ‘truth’.</div>
<div class="pullquote-container" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="pullquote pullquote-processed pullquote-quote" style="background: url("about:blank") 0px 0px no-repeat scroll rgb(239 , 239 , 239); border: 1px dotted rgb(204 , 204 , 204); color: #666666; float: right; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , "times" , serif; font-size: 1.2em; font-stretch: normal; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0.6em 0px 0.4em 1em; padding: 0.6em 0.6em 0.6em 2.2em; vertical-align: baseline; width: 224px;">Philosophically, truth is the obvious, the intuitive, that which we all kind of know to be true already</span><span class="pullquote pullquote-processed" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Philosophically, truth is the obvious, the intuitive, that which we all kind of know to be true already</span>. It is, in other words, all that is simples! Admittedly, over millennia there have been many Twitter-esque storms over truth but the difficulty with truth has never been its proof but its stability. Truth is something to rely on, like my friend Geoff. Only in modern times, philosophers came to the conclusion that, like my predictable friend Geoff, truth was nothing more than the construct of wishful thinking. You see I have no friend Geoff. Post-truthed you! Meaning WOTY 2016 is a hundred years too late! Shame-faced emojis all round at the OED Xmas party when it transpires that post-truth is itself a little bit post-truthy.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Actually this matters not because, as the OED’s definition says, post-truth is less a question of truths than facts. Trouble is, truths and facts are not the same. For example, truths cannot be proven while facts must be. Truths hold true, whatever the facts. Facts, however, let you down when a more attractive new fact comes along.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Even worse, facts require other facts to work out if they are reliable or not. With the rise of the internet we find ourselves wallowing in facts that need more facts to check if they are facts. Such a proliferation of facts means we are suffering from #Factobesity, leaving us too bloated and exhausted to check facts any more. So we just click ‘share’ and this is the problem. The internet has simultaneously provided us with the means of sharing facts in minutes to undermine Trump’s outrageous claims, and at the same time means of spreading fake facts to bolster Trump’s outrageous claims.</div>
<div class="file file-image file-image-jpeg file-content-full-width" id="file-9484" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div class="content" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<img alt="" src="http://cdn.bigissue.com/sites/bigissue/files/styles/insert_main_wide_image/public/4/84//brexit_nhs_pledge_0.jpg?itok=NMTWcoub" height="310" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" typeof="foaf:Image" width="620" /></div>
</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<br />
It’s a phenomenon aided by the revelation that 60 per cent of Americans rely on social media for their news, leading to the rise in news curation, where each of us becomes an editor of our own journal we share across our filter bubbles of like-minded friends. How many of these news stories do we read beyond the headline? I suspect very few. When we do this, we transform facts from newsworthy to #Memeworthy, worth sharing online irrespective of its ‘truth’.</div>
<div class="pullquote-container" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span class="pullquote pullquote-processed pullquote-quote" style="background: url("about:blank") 0px 0px no-repeat scroll rgb(239 , 239 , 239); border: 1px dotted rgb(204 , 204 , 204); color: #666666; float: right; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , "times" , serif; font-size: 1.2em; font-stretch: normal; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0.6em 0px 0.4em 1em; padding: 0.6em 0.6em 0.6em 2.2em; vertical-align: baseline; width: 224px;">The outlook for facts in 2017 appears grim but while news memes may be false they can still reveal truths</span><span class="pullquote pullquote-processed" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The outlook for facts in 2017 appears grim but while news memes may be false they can still reveal truths</span>. True, every time we share a news meme we allow alt-right trolls and democracy hackers to harness post-facts to platform a truth that appears as stable now as it was millennia ago when truth was first invented, gifting us a pre-post-truth to end on. People will believe anything is true if it feels truthy and they already thought that. The Greeks had their own WOTY for it, they called it sophistry.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Truth, it transpires, is nothing more than a selfie of our own prejudices – which is bad but at least we all know what it is now that it is gone, which is a consolation of sorts.</div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">William Watkin is Professor of Contemporary Literature and Philosophy at Brunel University</em></div>
<div style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.5em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<a href="https://twitter.com/wwatkinbrunel" style="border: 0px; color: #e10010; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">@WWatkinBrunel</a></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-60448049013698783802016-11-25T13:08:00.001+00:002016-11-25T13:08:22.547+00:00Meaning of Post Truth (fun version)<iframe width="480" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DQt41wwfEw8" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen=""></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-82509013627497711552016-11-23T08:59:00.001+00:002016-11-23T08:59:06.504+00:00Post-truth is Word of the Year<iframe width="480" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kdbei6w-H-E" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen=""></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-18308904072157637242016-11-04T17:08:00.001+00:002016-11-04T17:08:43.388+00:00Child Migrant Admits He's 22: British Press Guilty of Paedophobia?<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jmJzxsi1etM" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862832.post-62729260036883463502016-10-24T15:39:00.001+01:002016-10-24T15:39:25.717+01:00Trump is a liar, but he also tells the truth.<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eXss-RZhKqc" width="480"></iframe>Watkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03975658226622630230noreply@blogger.com0