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Researchers believe they have identified the prime driver for a startling rise in the number of people who think the Earth is flat: Google’s video-sharing site, YouTube.
Their suspicion was raised when they attended the world’s largest gatherings of Flat Earthers at the movement’s annual conference in Rayleigh, North Carolina, in 2017, and then in Denver, Colorado, last year.
Interviews with 30 attendees revealed a pattern in the stories people told about how they came to be convinced that the Earth was not a large round rock spinning through space but a large flat disc doing much the same thing.
Of the 30, all but one said they had not considered the Earth to be flat two years ago but changed their minds after watching videos promoting conspiracy theories on YouTube. “The only person who didn’t say this was there with his daughter and his son-in-law and they had seen it on YouTube and told him about it,” said Asheley Landrum, who led the research at Texas Tech University.
[...] Some said they watched the videos only in order to debunk them but soon found themselves won over by the material.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by crafoo on Tuesday February 19 2019, @03:00AM (4 children)
Brilliant solution! Our masters need more control. Finally, this is becoming obvious to everyone. But! Whatever we do, do not teach critical reasoning skills through school, every class. Do not weave rational decision making skills, personal bullshit verification, and self-reflection into class lessons. Better to stick with the current dogmas of in-group out-group battle strategies and finding-your-inner-victim.
Just like this article. We are the victims. Youtube is to blame. We accept no consequences for our actions or the state of our civilization. Good news though. We found someone to blame.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 19 2019, @07:27AM (3 children)
I blame crafoo and his radical free speech ideology. Don't you realize that mocking Flat Earthers for being stupid, and not allowing them to blame Flatbook, will only make them double down and go fully 2D?
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Tuesday February 19 2019, @04:48PM (2 children)
That's okay. We'll just nuke them from orbit.
--
Co-worker: "Good morning!"
Me: "You need to seriously calm down."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 19 2019, @08:06PM (1 child)
Pff.. If you can hit their line segment.
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Tuesday February 19 2019, @08:28PM
It's anti-plane technology. We're good.
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Always stop and look both ways at a train crossing.
You can't trust a train.
They have loco motives.