fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2239 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2239 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

01.

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02.

[Elementary]

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03.

[Pokemon]

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04.

[Noah, Power Rangers MegaForce]

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05.

[Mass Effect]

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06.

[Resident Evil]

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07.

[Medaka Box]

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08.

[Shameless]

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09.

[Star Trek 2009]

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10.

[Dreamwork's Sinbad, Avengers, American Gods, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Batman, Gunnerkrigg Court, Grim Adventures, Trickster's Choice/Queen]

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11.

[American Dad]

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12.

[Laurell K. Hamilton]

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13.

[my neighbour totoro]

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14.

[Medaka Box]

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15.

[Downton Abbey]

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16.

[The Red Panda, Black Jack Justice]

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 04 pages, 080 secrets from Secret Submission Post #320.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

They keep forwarding or Facebooking things which a quick check reveal to be wrong, wrong, unsubstantiated, out of date, and/or wrong. It's not like they're unable to think critically, they're smart people, but how do I educate them in the ways of internet rumors without sounding like I'm saying "Stop being so gullible!" ...which, I admit, I kind of am.

Don't pretend Snopes is the ultimate source. In fact, referring them to something like Snopes, which is all about debunking stupid shit, might make you look like you're calling them stupid.

I suggest something like Wikipedia, or a site that isn't about debunking; Snopes should let you find that. You say they're smart people; treat them as such.

I don't know, I don't think it's fair to get angry at Snopes. It doesn't just debunk stupid shit, it debunks general rumors. There's plenty of things believed by smart people because they've simply heard it so often. I've heard very smart people repeat that 'blondes are going extinct' rumor way too often.

OP, you could try saying you searched the internet to find more about the subject, and then stumbled upon a webpage and found out differently? Try asking their opinion on it, seeing if they think it's true or not--that way it sounds like you're asking them for advice, and aren't trying to educate them.

Still, Wikipedia is a good start, and I agree with that.

I'm not angry at Snopes; I've used it. The problem is that this is a case of a young relative trying to correct an older relative; it's very easy to look disrespectful. Hell, a lot of well meaning people ARE disrespectful, which means the incorrect person shuts down the conversation and never learns better.

There's nothing wrong with Snopes, but it might not be the best website to use in this case.

Edited 2013-02-19 00:30 (UTC)

Maybe you can say something like "hey, I've found this website that is really helpful for fact-checking! Sometimes articles on internet are not all true or too old, and this really helps." Maybe you can share your own experience? How at first this website helped you and made you more aware of hoaxes?

"Hey, that's pretty interesting, but have you seen this? [link to relevant snopes article]"

Then again, I'm not sure if being tactful is possible when calling out somebody's gullibility. If they're the belligerent type, they'll just assume you're an ass anyway :/

When that happens, I usually link to the snopes article and say something like 'just found this when I googled your story, thank god ______ isn't real! It's a terrifying idea though!', or you know, whatever fits the situation. Basically, just make it look like you are organically contributing the the discussion on the subject, rather than piping up just to tell them that they're wrong. I would normally say ignore it, but sometimes the urban myths people circulate are actually dangerous or offensive, so I think it's important to point out the fake ones when they fall into this category.

Send a snopes link back about how you were so concerned about what they sent you that you looked it up and found out it was wrong and isn't that great older relatives?!

well for starters you may want to have relatives who don't believe that snopes is liberal propaganda

that's been my problem

holy shit I don't even know what to say to that

One of my asshole family members is always reblogging stupid fake shit. I get great enjoyment out of tearing it down and calling him out on his stupid shit.

Next time they do that, maybe just drop the link for snopes.com and say "hey you seems to like news stories (or whatever it is)! I found this cool site that will help you verify them" or something.

idk, one of my friends straight up didn't believe the Snopes page and told me that it was "so wrong" for me to try to say that whatever rape-scare rumor he was spreading was false.

OP, learn it from me: it's not worth it. The people who never fact-check are the same people who get offended if you so much as insinuate that they are wrong.

Let them find out on their own, or just nod and wait for the conversation to go somewhere else (or tactfully change the topic if you've got the skills for that).

"Huh, that's really interesting. I've heard elsewhere, though, that .... (paste Snopes link)"

This way, you're flattering their ego by "thanking" them for bringing it to your attention, and you're not outright calling them "wrong", per se. It would take a positively titanic amount of insecurity to flip your shit one someone who simply pointed out that they'd heard differently elsewhere. It's just a factual statement - you have heard otherwise elsewhere, it's not YOU'RE STUPID AND WRONG (even though both may be true).

Repeat until they start to go there themselves before posting stupid shit and making themselves look stupid in the process.

Edited 2013-02-19 01:36 (UTC)

Just reply to their junk with a link and 'whoops, this one got debunked!' Maybe they'll stop with their crap.

Either that, or hide them from your feed. It's not worth the stress.

I find there is no good way and I just cringe and try to ignore it.

It depends on what it is. The stuff that's like, kidnapped children, or gang hoaxes, or various things like that? I leave a Snopes link with a "Didn't want you to worry about it! :)" and have never had anyone be pissed off.

If it's politics, that's another game altogether.

Is it just me, or do the "interesting, but..." or "thanks for telling me, but..." set-ups almost make it worse? It's just so painfully obvious that you're trying to be polite even though the message you are sending is still "You are WRONG, WRONG, WRONG." I like the idea to add a note saying "Wouldn't want you to worry" or something since it shows you care about them without the obviously-false pretense that you were grateful to them for sharing the information...

[ SECRET POST #2239 ]

How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?

Re: How do I tactfully refer my older relatives to snopes?