Agnotology (WILLFUL IGNORANCE) Updated Encore with Dr. Robert Proctor

Ologies with Alie Ward

Alie Ward

Comedy, Science, Society & Culture

4.9 • 23.8K Ratings

🗓️ 12 February 2025

⏱️ 80 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Yes, there is an -ology for that. And yes, we’re airing this episode -– with a ton of 2025 updates -– because it’s never felt more relevant. Dr. Robert Proctor is a Stanford professor of the History of Science and co-edited the book “Agnotology: The Making & Unmaking of Ignorance,” having coined the word 30 years ago. We chat about everything from tobacco marketing, to the sugar lobby, to racial injustice, horse vision, the psychology of the Flat Earther movement, which countries have the highest rates of climate denial, empathy, how to navigate difficult conversations and why it's critical to dismantle the systems of willful ignorance, starting locally.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Oh, hey, it's the tea bag camped out in your garbage disposal. Allie Ward. Here we are. It's February
0:05.3	2025. We got a fresh, shiny new year. Now, this is an updated encore. So we have gone through
0:11.7	meticulously and added updated asides, extra asides, more references of articles, and even some
0:18.5	news from the last few weeks for you. So you can please pass it on
0:22.3	to everyone in the world, because today we are exploring the topic of not just ignorance,
0:27.1	but willful ignorance, intentional misinformation, doubt, controversy, how populations can willingly
0:33.5	swallow ladlefuls of bullshit as if it's the truth. But before we examine our own lingering
0:40.1	denseness, let's thank the folks at patreon.com slash ologies for all their great questions. They
0:45.0	submitted and for supporting the show for as little as a dollar a month. You two can join if you'd
0:49.9	like. Thank you to everyone who subscribes and rates and of course reviews to keep the show up in the
0:54.8	charts. And this week's hot pick from just a few days ago is from Help, H-E-A-E-E-L-L-L-P-P-P-B, who wrote,
1:03.4	Thanks, Hansom, heard from another podcast and hooked. Really enjoy. Passing on to Friends. Help.
1:09.5	Handsome is a compliment I will take. And everyone who left
1:12.3	reviews, I read them all. I love them all. Thank you so much. Okay. On to this 2025 update to
1:17.1	Agnotology. We're going to get into it. Agno comes from the Greek for unknown. And according to the
1:22.9	originator of the word agnotology, it is the study of ignorance and it seeks to answer why we don't know what we don't know. And the purpose of the word agnotology. It is the study of ignorance and it seeks to answer why we don't know
1:30.3	what we don't know. And the person who coined the phrase, I'm sure you're like, was it a long
1:34.9	dead philosopher? Was it a quippy war nurse? Was it a child? Wise beyond her years. Nope, it's our
1:42.0	guest today. That is correct. The biggest cheese in the
1:45.3	agnotology world is here to talk to you. And he edited the book Agnotology, The Making and
1:50.6	Unmaking of Ignorance. And approximately 10 million of you have tweeted and emailed me begging
1:57.1	to have him on. He's been on my list for years. So this was a huge get to have him sit down
	...

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