Dear Mr. President: You constantly call news reports you do not like "fake news." That is not correct. Whether you like something or not doesn't make it fake news. What makes a news report "fake news" is when it fails the time-tested standards for truth. For instance, when the reported event does not correspond to the physical world we all inhabit together, that is fake news. But just in case that definition is a bit too much for you, let me show you a clear example of fake news, and explain why it is fake news.
The headline circled in the picture on the left, and the story to which it refers, is fake news. The headline is fake news because it isn't true. You see, a polygraph refers to a specific type of machine and process for determining whether someone is telling the truth. I could cite lots of definitions from well-respected sources giving basically the same definition, but I will just give one. The Legal Dictionary defines the process and equipment as follows: "...a trained examiner fits a subject with sensors to measure respiration, heart rate and blood pressure, and perspiration, which the polygraph records using pens on graph paper. The examiner asks a series of questions, including control questions that are designed to provoke anxiety and denial. Later, another examiner compares these answers withanswers pertaining to the matter at hand." [1] But when you read the article, you discover that it doesn't really say you took a polygraph. Instead, using a machine called a Voice Stress Analyzer, somebody I've never heard of says they can analyze your voice remotely and determine your stress level and tell whether you are telling the truth. So there are at least two problems. First, the National Research Council, after studying all the available literature on the Voice Stress Analyzer technology, said "this research and the few controlled tests conducted over the past decade offer little or no scientific basis for the use of the computer voice stress analyzer or similar voice measurement instruments." [2] In other words, there is no evidence that the technology cited by the National Enquirer works the way a polygraph works. Second, since you never were fitted with sensors to measure your respiration, heart rate, blood pressure, and perspiration while being asked both control and truth-test questions, you never took a polygraph. Therefore, since the headline asserts that you passed a polygraph, when in fact you have not, it is fake news.
What is NOT fake news is the Special Counsel's investigation. The information generated by that investigation is being vetted and assessed by a grand jury of 16-23 American citizens chosen at random, just like every other jury in America. That grand jury has handed down nearly 20 indictments. Thirteen of the people indicted were Russian nationals, and they were indicted for interfering with the 2016 presidential election. Of the remaining indictments, five of the people indicted have already pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about their contacts with Russian officials during your campaign and transition. So you see, that is NOT fake news. A whole bunch of American citizens have looked at a ton of evidence and have produced indictments and guilty pleas and in one case even a jail sentence. The Special Counsel's investigation is tied to the world we all inhabit together in some very tangible, measurable ways.
I hope this little primer helps you use the term "fake news" correctly in the future. But I'm not holding my breath.
[1] The Legal Dictionary
[2] [1]:National Research Council (2003). The Polygraph and Lie Detection. National Academies Press. ISBN 9780309263924.
The headline circled in the picture on the left, and the story to which it refers, is fake news. The headline is fake news because it isn't true. You see, a polygraph refers to a specific type of machine and process for determining whether someone is telling the truth. I could cite lots of definitions from well-respected sources giving basically the same definition, but I will just give one. The Legal Dictionary defines the process and equipment as follows: "...a trained examiner fits a subject with sensors to measure respiration, heart rate and blood pressure, and perspiration, which the polygraph records using pens on graph paper. The examiner asks a series of questions, including control questions that are designed to provoke anxiety and denial. Later, another examiner compares these answers withanswers pertaining to the matter at hand." [1] But when you read the article, you discover that it doesn't really say you took a polygraph. Instead, using a machine called a Voice Stress Analyzer, somebody I've never heard of says they can analyze your voice remotely and determine your stress level and tell whether you are telling the truth. So there are at least two problems. First, the National Research Council, after studying all the available literature on the Voice Stress Analyzer technology, said "this research and the few controlled tests conducted over the past decade offer little or no scientific basis for the use of the computer voice stress analyzer or similar voice measurement instruments." [2] In other words, there is no evidence that the technology cited by the National Enquirer works the way a polygraph works. Second, since you never were fitted with sensors to measure your respiration, heart rate, blood pressure, and perspiration while being asked both control and truth-test questions, you never took a polygraph. Therefore, since the headline asserts that you passed a polygraph, when in fact you have not, it is fake news.
What is NOT fake news is the Special Counsel's investigation. The information generated by that investigation is being vetted and assessed by a grand jury of 16-23 American citizens chosen at random, just like every other jury in America. That grand jury has handed down nearly 20 indictments. Thirteen of the people indicted were Russian nationals, and they were indicted for interfering with the 2016 presidential election. Of the remaining indictments, five of the people indicted have already pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about their contacts with Russian officials during your campaign and transition. So you see, that is NOT fake news. A whole bunch of American citizens have looked at a ton of evidence and have produced indictments and guilty pleas and in one case even a jail sentence. The Special Counsel's investigation is tied to the world we all inhabit together in some very tangible, measurable ways.
I hope this little primer helps you use the term "fake news" correctly in the future. But I'm not holding my breath.
[1] The Legal Dictionary
[2] [1]:National Research Council (2003). The Polygraph and Lie Detection. National Academies Press. ISBN 9780309263924.
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