Seeking the Truth

You’d think that in the age of the Internet, one can find answers to factual questions easily. Not always, writes Tim Harford. How you frame the question to, say, Google can influence what you learn. Ask Google “Why is the sky blue?” and it will point to Rayleigh scattering as the answer. Ask instead, “Why is the sky white?” and you are pointed to a different reason.

 

This sounds mildly amusing. But it is an example of something much bigger. How? Well, when most people say, “I’ve done my research”, the danger is that the info they got was based on how they framed the question! No deliberate bias, no malice, no vested interest, no agenda, no propaganda, and yet…

 

One way to avoid being misled when you ask the question is to also ask its opposite – “Is Russia winning in Ukraine?” and “Is Ukraine winning?”. Each question will throw up sites that (mostly) confirm that question. Flip through enough sites from both sets and you could get a truer picture.

“A truth-seeking citizen should systematically search for contrary views.”

 

As you might suspect:

“Few people, from any part of the political spectrum, tend to do this.”

It turns out that the reason isn’t bias. Rather, it lies in how our brains are wired. We are wired to seek confirmation of what we already believe. We are wired to remember whatever confirms our views. Even trying to check if one is wrong is an uphill struggle for most of us.