On Dealing with Information, Misinformation, and Communication

What the Fact?: Debunking Disinformation to Detangle the Truth by Seema Yasmin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I think this book does what it intended to do: introduces readers to a complex topic in a readable way. The chatty tone keeps interest going even when technical terms are being introduced. And the bibliography is there for readers who want to follow up on an idea.

There were new illustrations and recent analyses given where a topic was familiar to me, and there were some solutions I’d heard before but need constant reminders because they are not my natural reaction. There were also new solutions to ponder.

Strong points: the history of journalism was fascinating. I found the distinction between “High conflict” and “Good conflict” illuminating and may follow up by reading the source quoted. I found the section near the end where Yasmin addressed ways to react when my views are challenged an excellent addition to ways to address differences with others. Now to remember and do it! And useful is the reminder that we are human and will make mistakes, but forge on.

The book is a good antidote for the attitude that had been brewing to distrust everything; one piece of which is the awareness of degrees of certainty and how they can (and should) change with the search for additional information



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