Fear vs Fact

The Why Factor

• Episode: Fear vs Fact
• Website: The Why Factor
• Feed URL: https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p00xtky9.rss
• Duration: 00:17:52
• Published: 2016-08-06 00:00

Mike Williams asks if we now live in a post-factual age — where messages of fear dominate and the truth goes unspoken or unheard? He investigates the “Backfire Effect” which means that entrenched views can become more entrenched – when confronted by contradictory facts. Politicians are often accused of distorting the truth – with Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump the latest.

(Image - Group of people standing with one holding a newspaper with the headline "Earth Doomed". Credit - Everett Collection via Shutterstock)