Discussion:
Recognizing bogus posts
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Gary McGath
2016-12-02 10:36:12 UTC
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"Fake news" has been a hot topic lately. It's even gone meta; the
Washington Post published a list of "fake news" sites which many have
denounced as ineptly compiled. We've had our own share of fake news here
lately. There should be a filk of "I've got a little list" in there, but
first I'd like to offer some tips on recognizing fake rumors.

If something unexpected comes from a single source and has no other
support, it's worth some skepticism. An email address containing a
person's name is not proof that it came from that person. It's
impossible to register all potential email addresses that contain your name.

When the message claims that the person sending it is dead, that's
further reason to be suspicious. Corpses are notoriously reticent about
their status.

If most of the supporting details are wrong, it's very likely that the
message's main claim is wrong. If it references places and works that
don't exist, describes people in a way inconsistent with your knowledge,
and brings in events that nothing corroborates, those are all indicators
that it's either mistaken or intentionally deceptive.

Please apply some critical thinking to any implausible reports you see.
--
Gary McGath http://www.mcgath.com
Spear Carrier
2016-12-02 16:02:43 UTC
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Happy to listen to this advice.

Who moderates the list? Seems like there might be a troll lurking on the edges that needs to be removed.
Gary McGath
2016-12-02 16:12:27 UTC
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Post by Spear Carrier
Happy to listen to this advice.
Who moderates the list? Seems like there might be a troll lurking on the edges that needs to be removed.
Aren't you an aggressive lady! It's not a 'list', it's a newsgroup and it's unmoderated.

Kind Regards,

LM
Gary McGath
2016-12-02 16:16:24 UTC
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Post by Spear Carrier
Happy to listen to this advice.
Who moderates the list? Seems like there might be a troll lurking on the edges that needs to be removed.
This is Usenet. There's no moderation.
--
Gary McGath http://www.mcgath.com
Gary McGath
2016-12-02 16:56:06 UTC
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Post by Gary McGath
Post by Spear Carrier
Happy to listen to this advice.
Who moderates the list? Seems like there might be a troll lurking on the edges that needs to be removed.
This is Usenet. There's no moderation.
--
Gary McGath http://www.mcgath.com
Gary's killfiled me and can't see my posts. That's very interesting.

Lance Manload

Spunkmeyer University
School of Abnormal Psychology
Filk Studies
+41225186962
Spear Carrier
2016-12-03 15:30:48 UTC
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Post by Gary McGath
This is Usenet. There's no moderation.
Oh! Sorry. I've never participated this heavily in a usenet list before. I was part of the yahoo group crowd before they were yahoo groups - but it's been so long I can't even remember their name. But not this sort of list.
Gary McGath
2016-12-03 19:06:17 UTC
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Post by Spear Carrier
Post by Gary McGath
This is Usenet. There's no moderation.
Oh! Sorry. I've never participated this heavily in a usenet list before. I was part of the yahoo group crowd before they were yahoo groups - but it's been so long I can't even remember their name. But not this sort of list.
Welcome to the 20th century. :)
--
Gary McGath http://www.mcgath.com
Spear Carrier
2016-12-03 21:12:51 UTC
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Post by Gary McGath
Welcome to the 20th century. :)
--
Gary McGath http://www.mcgath.com
Yee haw let me get out my landline and make some calls.

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