How to spot misinformation

How to spot misinformation

All right. Friends, fellow thinkers, dreamers, poets, and people who occasionally fall into three-hour YouTube rabbit holes. Let's talk about something super important: how to spot misinformation and not getting played online. Because let's be real, your brain is gold. It is powerful. It is your most valuable instrument. And as a result, you have to watch what you're constantly downloading into it.

Have you ever heard the quote, "You are what you eat"? I'm sure you have. And no, I'm not going to go on some wild rant about you eating McDonald's too much or how you need to add five or more greens to your diet. I mean, which by the way, you could. Maybe you should. But what I'm really talking about is what you're constantly feeding and exposing your brain, mind, and soul to.

Now, you might be thinking, "Uri, chill, bruh. It's just fun. I'm not sipping the punch. It's just entertainment." And honestly, I believe that much of what you are watching, following, participating in is probably harmless and pure entertainment. But I think we would be fools if we didn't recognize that those things that we are constantly looking at with our eyeballs and exposing our minds to also have an impact on our moods, attitudes, and even behavior.

I used to have a good friend that would tell me, "Uri, don't let people rent space inside your head." And he was totally right. My goal today is to help you be a little more scientific, more deliberate, and smart in your approach to what you're being exposed to on your feed, YouTube, social media accounts, or stuff that randomly just shows up on your email. Instead of just letting people park their anger, their complaining, and their questionable opinions inside your precious mind.

My hope today is not to tell you what to believe. Man, that's your job. But to help you create a vetting tool, a structure that allows you to use your best thinking and your best decision-making while being exposed to a world of information and misinformation. I want you to know that this isn't going to be some rant about the evils of the World Wide Web, social media, or some of the things you're connected to.

I want you to know that I have complete confidence and optimism about dealing with the things that you and I are facing, but I also have zero doubt there are some things that are happening around you that could create a tremendous amount of damage to you. Like ideologues, landmines, or traps that you could ignorantly step into that can hurt you, your friends, and your family.

So stick around and give me an honest listen and see if this presentation makes good sense to you. Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to give you three things for you to watch out for. And then I'll share a dynamite acronym. You know, I'm a fan of acronyms that will help you manage the Wild West that you are stepping into every day, whether it's through the web or social media feeds. Are you ready? Let's go.

Number one, you're being targeted, and you don't even know it. Let me explain. Every time you scroll, whether it's TikTok, Insta, Snap, or even some sketchy news site, you're seeing content that's been chosen for you. Not because it's true, but because it makes you click or rage or even feel something intense. That's the algorithm at work.

An algorithm is like a digital brain that decides what you see online. So when you're on sites or feeds, that algorithm is watching what you click, like, comment on, post to watch, or scroll past. Then it thinks, "Oh, like that video about doing yoga with goats? Let's give them ten more of that." They do this to keep you watching, swiping, and staying on the app longer because more time means more ads, and more ads means more money for the platform.

But here's the deal. Algorithms don't care if something is true, healthy, or even good for you. They just care if it gets your attention. So the more you engage with a certain kind of content, the more of that you're going to see. Even if it's extreme, fake, or harmful. That's why I need you to keep your head above the fray and your wits about you. Because if you don't start thinking critically and questioning what you're seeing, you're going to get taken for a ride. And that can mess with your mindset, your relationships, and even your beliefs about yourself in the world.

Okay, number two, misinformation is a mind game. I'm sure you've seen fake headlines or AI-generated photos, those deepfake videos. But here's what's tricky. Misinformation doesn't usually look fake. In fact, it's presented to you confidently, like it's true. And because of that, it passes through our mental filters. And when you already believe something, your brain wants to say, "See, I told you I was right."

You know what that's called, by the way? That's called confirmation bias. And it looks like this. Imagine that you think Utah drivers are just the worst. By the way, I'm just using this as an example. So put your pitchforks down. The next time you see a Utah driver making a simple mistake, your brain immediately jumps up and says, "Yep, Utah drivers are terrible." But meanwhile, your brain didn't notice the other thousand Utah drivers that were driving fine.

Remember that the algorithm is constantly feeding you what you already believe. Kind of like an echo chamber. If you can imagine shouting "Hello" over a canyon and hearing that "Hello" bounce back and forth like an echo. That's what the web is doing to you. The algorithm just pushes more content that you already agree with. Now you know.

And in a moment, I'm going to throw down some pro tips for you. But first, let's go to number three: Beware of flattery traps. Have you ever seen the movie The Princess Bride? Oh my gosh, if you haven't, movie night! Get your friends, family together. Watch this incredible, epic, romantic comedy.

There's a line in there where the main character of the show, Westley, is talking to Princess Buttercup. Yeah, Buttercup. And he says, "Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something." Now, listen. Of course, life isn't all pain. But the point that Westley is trying to make is that some people will try to flatter you in order to sell you something or to get you to do something.

I have been a witness to many sad and tragic stories of exceptional people like you who, through flattery and compliments, ended up doing things that resulted in catastrophic outcomes. One wonderful girl was personally DM'd and complimented on her beauty by a so-called artist that was going to paint her and turn her into a model and a star. Even though she refused to send that person inappropriate pictures of herself, she ended up sending this person thousands of dollars so that they would purchase painting supplies.

One boy was pursued, flattered, and complimented by a girl who said she was his age, and a virtual relationship began. This person sent that boy inappropriate images and requested for the boy to do the same, which he did. At that point, that person threatened to share those inappropriate pictures with all of his family, the community where he lived, and the school that he was attending unless they were paid a certain amount of money. Terrified, the boy sent the money.

But so many others caught in this flattery trap became terrified, ashamed, and totally stuck and, as a result, took really tragic actions. Listen to me very carefully. You may think that these people are dumb, naive, and that you would never fall for this trap, but you're wrong. These boys and girls are no different than you. And if they can fall for this trap, so can you.

The first step to you avoiding these traps that are all over the internet is to realize and admit that you could just as easily fall for it yourself. And as a result, you'll be better prepared to not fall for them and to help your friends who may find themselves stuck in these incredibly difficult situations.

If something like this ever happens to you, no matter what the other people say or how embarrassed you may feel, you need to tell your parents or an adult you trust immediately. I plead with you, no matter what, go for help. A sibling, a parent, an adult you trust. Do it immediately and don't convince yourself not to do it, nor be manipulated by people who are looking to cause you harm. Please, please, please, trust me.

Here are a couple of things for you to know. One, social media is the number one place for scams. Two, the most common types of scams are fake profiles pretending to be teens. Another one is "You want a prize" or "You've been selected" type messages. The next one is flattery plus pressure tactics and blackmail, like I talked about. Another one is AI-generated fake content used to manipulate trust.

Studies have shown that teens are especially vulnerable to emotional scams, unlike older adults, who are often tricked by financial scams. Teens are more often pulled into emotional manipulation scams, ones that target self-esteem, loneliness, or a desire to be liked or validated.

Honestly, it makes me sad to even speak to this because I don't want to promote a culture of fear. But there are wolves disguised as sheep on the internet, and you need to know so that you can do your web surfing confidently and with intelligence.

Can I give you a mental tool that will upgrade your ability to filter through the firehose of information that is constantly knocking at your door? Try this before you respond, click, comment, or trust someone online. Use this simple and cool acronym: THINK.

T stands for true. Is this actually true? Have I checked it with other trusted sources? What do my parents or trusted people think about this? We all have blind spots. Check with other people.

H is for helpful. Does this help me in any way? Does it add something valuable, kind, or constructive to my day or to somebody else's day?

I is for integrity check. Does this align with who I want to be, or does it pull me away from my values and belief systems? Would my siblings, friends, or parents think that this is safe and good and nourishing?

N is for nourishing. Does this nourish me? Man, does it build me up as a friend, student, son, or daughter? Does this help me to be a better person, or is it taking away from that? If it is, know what to do.

And finally, K, does it keep me safe? Does this choice keep me physically, emotionally, and digitally safe?

My dear friends, you live in an incredible time. The knowledge and information that you have access to in a matter of seconds is astonishing and can be a huge strength and asset to you. But there's also a tremendous amount of information swirling around you that is just meant to rage-bait you, misinform you, take advantage of you, or get you to join somebody's wild ideas or vendettas.

What I'm hoping you will do as a result of this short video is to upgrade your internal operating system so that instead of jumping on board immediately to the things that are being said or shown around you, that you will use that simple tool I just shared with you. Remember to THINK before you leap. See what I did there?

Anyways, forward and upward, my friend. I'll see you soon.

Next