From Pine View Farm

So You Think You Know Something . . . . 0

Barry Ritholtz discusses the mechanics of misinformation.

However, there is a disconcerting trend that has gained strength: agnotology. It’s a term worth knowing, since it is going global. The word was coined by Stanford University professor Robert N. Proctor, who described it as “culturally constructed ignorance, created by special interest groups to create confusion and suppress the truth in a societally important issue.” It is especially useful to sow seeds of doubt in complex scientific issues by publicizing inaccurate or misleading data.

Follow the link, where he analyzes the role of “agnotology” in Britain’s Brexit vote. Left unanswered is this question:

How the hell does “agnotology” differ from propaganda or, for that matter, a plain old lie, and why did we need a new word with more syllables for it?

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