Facts, fiction and opinions

Last Thursday, in The Times – August 1st 2019 – David Aaronovitch commented that the determination to test facts and the ability to distinguish fact from opinion are of great importance. They should be taught as part of any worthwhile English curriculum; it is not difficult.

With the start of commercial television in the nineteen-fifties the words As seen on TV were superimposed on much of the advertising that was seen at the time. These words amounted to an invitation to trust the new channel and its commercial advertising.

The number of sources inviting our trust nowadays has grown exponentially and much of what we read, or simply stare at comes from sources that assume that we will trust them. We should not.

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