Inspired in large part by the Mueller Report and the investigation into Judge Brett Kavanaugh during the Senate Hearing of his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, "Red Herring" is a term used in American journalism and investigative reporting to describe a piece of information that is presented as evidence but meant to distract or deceive. In my poster, I illustrate this term in a literal way using red colored illustrations of herring fish as a background pattern (to, in part, symbolize an abundance of misleading information) and placing a model U.S. Department of Justice report at the center. The body text of the report, which by virtue of each of the report's headings is supposed to contain important information concerning the general public, is almost completely censored except for a single phrase in the last paragraph which reads "Red Herring". With this poster, I aim to bring awareness to issues of epistemology and agency. I ask the viewer to consider now more than ever before to exercise healthy skepticism of the institutions we as a society allow jurisdiction over truth to.
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FAKE NEWS!
Fake
news might feel like a recent development that has only come to
prominence since the election of one politician who shall not be named,
but the practice of spreading rumours and misinformation is as old as
the printed word.
People
have always twisted the truth, or simply told lies, to get what they
want (or change the world). But now we have the ability to share
information faster and wider than ever before. It used to be only a few
media outlets or government sources that could shape public thought, but
now everyone can.
And
unlike the media or government, none of us are held accountable for
what we post. As there are few laws or fines that can be thrown at us
for posting lies, there is no incentive to act responsibly in the public
sphere. Get likes (or votes) first, worry about potential consequences
later. If the self-styled leader of the free world can’t be held to
account for regularly tweeting and spreading blatant untruths, then what
stops everybody else from doing the same?
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