Headlines taken at face value
“You can’t judge a book by its cover.” Meaning, don’t presume you know what something or someone is all about based on what you see. Possibly a warning meant to stop us from mistaking our own thoughts as fact, forcing us to think critically instead of expectantly. Unfortunately this prejudging-type of thinking seems to be a cultivating trend amongst my generation and the rising youth. But instead of literature titles and interactions between people, we see this trend in our newsfeed and social media. In the comments section where fifteen thousand people rip apart an article or image based off of a single individual’s post.
We have become a society that believes the headline is the story, that a three-page article is way too long to read and where people are proud to claim they don’t read anything at all. Some of us have a bad habit of only clicking on a link to buzz through the comments. Knowing the issue is topical and people will be flaming each other in the thread. Information has become a verbal crucible in which the most likes and shares determines its victor. Instead of researching and spending time to understand something, we take the convenient route of myths, false truths and misinformed internet trolls. But, this is not the reality of how information is exchanged.
We learn through repetition of experience, critical thought, fieldwork, independent research and analysis. From conducting a dialog between yourself and reliable sources and most of all team work. From collaborating with those who are involved and interested in the same topics as yourself. What you see is what you get, but that doesn’t mean you should trust everything you see and read. Not unless you’re willing to dig deeper than the surface.
