How false news can spread - Noah Tavlin

譯者: Harry Chen 審譯者: MQ L

There's a quote usually attributed to the writer Mark Twain that goes,

有個經常被當成作家 「馬克．吐溫」所說的引言 －

"A lie can travel halfway around the world

「當真相還在穿鞋子時

while the truth is putting on its shoes."

謊言就能遊走半個世界了」

Funny thing about that.

多好笑的事情阿！

There's reason to doubt that Mark Twain ever said this at all,

對「馬克．吐溫」到底曾否說過 這句話做懷疑是有道理的

thus, ironically, proving the point.

很諷刺地這樣講倒也有道理在

And today, the quote, whoever said it, is truer than ever before.

而且今天該引言－以前不論是誰所說 要比過往任何時刻更加真切

In previous decades, most media with global reach

在較早的數十年裡大多數 有全球足跡的新聞

consisted of several major newspapers and networks

結合了有直接匯集資訊管道的數家大報社

which had the resources to gather information directly.

以及電視、廣播網

Outlets like Reuters and the Associated Press

像是路透社、美聯社等

that aggregate or rereport stories were relatively rare compared to today.

彙集或報導新聞的傳播機構 比起今天是相對地稀罕，

The speed with which information spreads now

現今資訊傳播所用的速度

has created the ideal conditions for a phenomenon known as circular reporting.

已經創造出理想的條件來給一個 被稱做「迴繞式報導」的現象

This is when publication A publishes misinformation,

這是當 A 出版人刊登錯誤的資料

publication B reprints it,

B 出版人再次印製該資料

and publication A then cites B as the source for the information.

而 A 出版人接著引用 B 出版人當做資訊的來源

It's also considered a form of circular reporting

這同樣也被認定做一種繞圈式報導：

when multiple publications

當好幾家出版人報導相同的 假新聞的原般片段

report on the same initial piece of false information,

which then appears to another author as having been verified by multiple sources.

後來就像是另一位作者已經被 好幾個來源所驗明正身了

For instance, the 1998 publication of a single pseudoscientific paper

舉例來說： 1998 年有一篇 偽科學論文報告之出版品

arguing that routine vaccination of children causes autism

指出小孩子例行的疫苗注射造成了自閉症

inspired an entire antivaccination movement,

激起全面的反疫苗注射運動

despite the fact that the original paper has repeatedly been discredited

儘管事實上原始論文報告 已經一再地被學術圈所貶駁

by the scientific community.

Deliberately unvaccinated children are now contracting contagious diseases

執意不受打疫苗的孩子們

現在正感染到早已完全 在美國滅跡的傳染病

that had been virtually eradicated in the United States,

with some infections proving fatal.

有些感染還證實是會死人的

In a slightly less dire example,

在一個稍微不是太嚴重的案例裡

satirical articles that are formatted to resemble real ones

架構得類似真實文章的譏諷文章

can also be picked up by outlets not in on the joke.

同樣可以被看不出笑話 受愚弄的傳播機構挑選起來

For example, a joke article in the reputable British Medical Journal entitled

譬如在聲名遠著的「英國醫學期刊」 裡的一個不正經文章

"Energy Expenditure in Adolescents Playing New Generation Computer Games,"

標題為「在青少年玩新世代的 電腦遊戲時之能源耗用」

has been referenced in serious science publications over 400 times.

已經在正經嚴肅的多項 科學刊物裡被提及 400 多次

User-generated content, such as wikis,

使用者產生內容的 UGC － 像是維基百科

are also a common contributer to circular reporting.

一樣也是繞圈式報導常見的提供者

As more writers come to rely on such pages for quick information,

當更多作者為了迅速獲得資訊 而變得仰賴這樣的頁面

an unverified fact in a wiki page can make its way into a published article

在「維基」網頁一項未證實的事實能 走出自己的一片天進到書面文章裡面

that may later be added as a citation for the very same wiki information,

那文章也許稍後會因為完全一樣的 「維碁」資料被加進援引裡

making it much harder to debunk.

使得它更難被揭穿、破解

Recent advances in communication technology

現時通訊科技的進步

have had immeasurable benefits

在打破資訊與常人之間的屏障 已經產生無法衡量的好處

in breaking down the barriers between information and people.

But our desire for quick answers

不過我們渴求快速的解答

may overpower the desire to be certain of their validity.

可能遠勝於確認它們可靠性的慾望

And when this bias can be multiplied by billions of people around the world,

而當這樣的偏差可以幾乎即刻地 玩弄散佈世界上數十億的世人

nearly instantaneously, more caution is in order.

更謹慎小心是比較保險的

Avoiding sensationalist media,

少碰聳動的媒體、

searching for criticisms of suspicious information,

搜尋對可疑資訊的抨擊、

and tracing the original source of a report can help slow down a lie,

以及追索報導的來源出處 可以幫助放慢謊言的速度

giving the truth more time to put on its shoes.

給真相更多時間穿好鞋子！