Clickbait and Switch: The Viral Spread of Social Media Misinformation

Unbiased Science

@unbiasedscipod

Education, Science, Health & Fitness

4.4 • 644 Ratings

🗓️ 8 November 2023

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

On this week's podcast episode, Professor Tim Caulfield joins us to discuss the media's impact on health policy and science literacy. We dig into the concept of false balance with recent examples, and the phenomenon where people turn to unproven wellness hacks and advice endorsed by celebrities as opposed to evidence-based expert guidance. We talk about predatory journals and publications that muddy the waters and their impact consumption of science information. And of course, we cover the motivation of those who spread misinformation and how that shapes individual and collective behaviors. This was a very interesting and dynamic conversation that you definitely don't want to miss! Interested in advertising with us? Please reach out to advertising@airwavemedia.com, with “Unbiased Science” in the subject line. PLEASE NOTE: The discussion and information provided in this podcast are for general educational, scientific, and informational purposes only and are not intended as, and should not be treated as, medical or other professional advice for any particular individual or individuals. Every person and medical issue is different, and diagnosis and treatment requires consideration of specific facts often unique to the individual. As such, the information contained in this podcast should not be used as a substitute for consultation with and/or treatment by a doctor or other medical professional. If you are experiencing any medical issue or have any medical concern, you should consult with a doctor or other medical professional. Further, due to the inherent limitations of a podcast such as this as well as ongoing scientific developments, we do not guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the information or analysis provided in this podcast, although, of course we always endeavor to provide comprehensive information and analysis. In no event may Unbiased Science or any of the participants in this podcast be held liable to the listener or anyone else for any decision allegedly made or action allegedly taken or not taken allegedly in reliance on the discussion or information in this podcast or for any damages allegedly resulting from such reliance. The information provided herein do not represent the views of our employers.

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:19.7	Welcome to Unbiased Science, where we bring scientific method to the madness.
0:25.8	We're your hosts, Dr. Jessica Steyer and Dr. Andrea Love.
0:30.3	And this week, we are joined by Professor Timothy Caulfield, who is a Canada Research Chair
0:36.8	in Health, Law and Policy, a professor in
0:39.7	the Faculty of Law and the School of Public Health, and Research Director of the Health
0:45.6	Institute at the University of Alberta. His interdisciplinary research on topics like stem cells,
0:52.3	genetics, research ethics, the public representations of science and
0:56.8	public health policy has allowed him to publish over 350 academic articles. He's a member
1:04.2	of the Order Canada and a fellow of both the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy
1:09.7	of Health Sciences. He contributes frequently
1:12.8	to the popular press and is the author of two national bestsellers. And we'll link to all of this
1:18.8	in the show notes, The Cure for Everything, Untangling the Twisted Messages about Health, Fitness and Happiness,
1:25.5	and is Gwyneth Paltrow wrong about everything when celebrity
1:29.3	culture and science clash? By the way, that might be the best title ever. The answer is yes to that.
1:37.6	His most recent book is Relax, Damn It, a User's Guide to the Age of Anxiety. Calfield is also the co-founder of the Science Engagement Initiative, hashtag science up first,
1:49.8	and was the host and co-producer of the award-winning documentary TV show,
1:54.8	A User's Guide to Cheating Death, which has been shown in over 60 countries,
1:59.9	including streaming on Netflix in North America.
2:02.6	Well, our efforts are very much aligned with yours, although our backgrounds are obviously quite different.
2:09.6	So you have a law degree, whereas I have a doctorate in public health, and Andrea has a PhD in biomedical sciences. So this will be a really fun mashup for today.
2:21.2	And I just wanted to say thank you so much for joining us. We are super excited to get into
	...

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