Is this Column Fake News?

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 358 B

José Azel's latest books "On Freedom" and "Sobre La Libertad" are now available on Amazon.  Is this Column Fake News? (Previously published) Share Tweet Forward

First, let’s get the history right. Fake news is not new. As far back as the 13th century B.C., Rameses the Great spread lies and propaganda portraying the Battle of Kadesh as a great victory for the Egyptians when, in fact, the battle was a stalemate. During the first century B.C., Octavian ran an effective misinformation campaign portraying Mark Antony as a drunkard, and a puppet of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra. Fake news also has consequences. After his defeat in the Battle of Actium, Mark Antony killed himself upon hearing fake news rumors that Cleopatra had committed suicide.  Fake news also played a role in our Founding. Benjamin Franklin wrote fake news about murderous scalping Indians working with King George III in an effort to influence public opinion in favor of the American Revolution. Also, supporters of slavery spread fake news about violent slave rebellions. In war all sides use fake news profusely to mislead the enemy. Joseph Goebbels made a specialty of fake news as Nazi Germany’s Minister of Propaganda. And the Soviet Union created the image of a prosperous society when, in fact, it was an impoverished nation.  Fake news is not new, but the age of social media has expanded its scope. The term is a neologism, and it is helpful to identify different types of fake news. I particularly like the distinctions made by the co-founder of First Draft News, Dr. Claire Wardle. She classifies fake news as:  Satire or parody, with no intention to cause harm, but with the potential to fool.  False connection, when headlines, visuals or captions do not support the content.  Misleading content, misleading use of information to frame an issue or an individual.  False context, when genuine content is shared with false contextual information.  Impostor content, when genuine sources are impersonated with false, made-up sources.  Manipulated content, when genuine information or imagery is manipulated to deceive.  Fabricated content, when new content is 100 percent false, designed to deceive and do  harm.  Next, let’s realize that fake news is not an American phenomenon. I was recently in Finland, a country that shares an 832-mile border with Russia and is a constant target of disinformation campaigns organized by the Russian government. Since Finland declared independence from Russia, over 100 years ago, it has faced untruthful propaganda campaigns from its eastern neighbor designed to undermine Finnish society. Russia, of course, denies this. However, the problem took on a new urgency in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea and backed rebels in eastern Ukraine.  Finland has a long tradition of reading and has the highest score for reading performance of the 70 OECD nations rated by the Program for International Student Assessment. Helsinki’s new state-of-the-art, $110 million-dollar, library is a magnificent work of art, and the 5.5 million Fins borrow 68 million books per year. That is over 12 books per year per person. They lovingly refer to their new library as “Helsinki’s living room.” Finland also ranked first out of 35 counties in a study measuring resilience to fake news. So, what is the Finnish approach to fake news?  Importantly, they have fought the temptation to overregulate the media rejecting the idea of broad legislation that could jeopardize free speech. Very zealous of their democracy, Finland has launched an education initiative to prepare citizens of all ages to identify false information. Beginning in kindergarten, they have reformed their education system to emphasize critical thinking.  Using a digital literacy “toolkit,” elementary to high school students learn to examine claims in social media posts. Before they like or share something in social media they are taught to question: Who wrote this? Where has it been published? Is there a secondary source? The program combines fact-checking with critical thinking.  Finland’s educational strategy seems to be winning the war on fake news and a number of other countries are taking notice. A recent election encouraged citizens to think about fake news with the slogan: “Finland has the world’s best elections - think about why.”  Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos, Lily & José (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Most recently, they rafted for 17 days 220 miles in the Grand Canyon.  Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel José Azel’s writings are touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone who wishes to understand why countries do, or do not, progress will find in this book the best explanations. And, from these readings emerge numerous inferences: How and why do the good intentions of leftist collectivism lead countries to hell? Why is liberty not a sub product of prosperity, but rather one of its causes? If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would also recommend its reading to all politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With his writings Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: Azel brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous, Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                                    BUY NOW Los escritos de José Azel están tocados por la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquiera que desee entender por qué los países progresan, o no, encontrará en este libro las mejores explicaciones. De estas lecturas surgen numerosas inferencias: ¿Cómo y por qué las buenas intenciones del colectivismo de izquierda llevan a los países al infierno? ¿Por qué la libertad no es un subproducto de la prosperidad, sino una de sus causas? Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería de obligada lectura de todos los estudiantes universitarios, pero además, le recomendaría su lectura a todos los políticos, periodistas y policy makers. Con sus escritos Azel logra lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo. Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                            Compre Aqui "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future. Buy now Pedazos y Vacíos is a collection of poems written in by Dr. Azel in his youth. Poems are in Spanish. Buy now

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