Te Ao with MOANA – The War on Misinformation

By
The Daily Blog
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21
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What does robust research look like?

Who do we trust in a world of information overload?

How have you engaged with those sharing conspiracy theories online?

Do you find yourself wanting to block or argue with friends and whānau who are sharing dodgy information?

Six people discuss this new social media phenomena of misinformation and conspiracy theories, and urge trust in Māori leaders with a proven track record of challenging the Crown.

 

Te Ao with MOANA screens on Māori TV 8pm Mondays

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

21 COMMENTS

  1. Tina Ngata: “The genesis of many, not all but many of these conspiracy theories are the Alt Right. And the Alt Right have their own interests and reasons for wanting to destabilise society and destabilise centralist governments. But also they find very fertile soil in the minds of people who have been oppressed before, or who do feel they have a right to challenge government.”

    Toi Iti: “I’ve just seen really good people, who mean really well, get led down a really dark path. Because this is an unprecedented justifiably scary time for everybody of Aotearoa, in the midst of all of this Covid and what’s going on globally. So just adding to that anxiety for our people, – that is what I take issue with.”

    • Tina Ngata’s article on this is as much a conspiracy theory as any she criticizes, the inferences she draws and the studies she cites are all highly suspect and cherry picked to weave the narrative that white folk are responsible for everything in an ongoing and orchestrated plot against Maori, where the government, the UN, the media, and white folk are all bad and Maori are simply unwitting victims.

      Commentators like this should be shunned, they only seek to divide the country in order to exact recompense for themselves by stoking racial tension.

      • please explain how this narrative from Tina’s article is going to divide the country, stoke racial tension and get recompense for her….

        “But what concerns me more, right now, is the outright manipulation of our people for an agenda that ultimately exploits the marginalised. It’s a strategy that’s being orchestrated and advanced by the alt-right, and it deliberately places brown, black, and poor people at its forefront.”
        “Well, first it’s important to realise that, ultimate agendas aside, the audience for the rhetoric is not the right or the left. It’s the disenfranchised — those who feel that their rights have been taken away from them and who have an inherent distrust of the state and media, along with a distaste for authorities telling them what to do.

        These theories aren’t a big stretch for a group who’ve had 180 years of the state riding roughshod over their rights.”

        • It takes less of a leap of faith to see how Tina benefits from stoking racial tension than the leaps she makes in her article. The greater the perception of racism, the greater impetus to redress it; redress is funding.

          Doubt this phenomenon exists? Maori academic/health practitioner calls lockdown racist; a single iota of common sense or critical thought can debunk this.
          https://www.stuff.co.nz/pou-tiaki/300082800/coronavirus-quarantine-policy-shift-is-racist-critics-say

          Misinformation is indeed most prevalent in the alt-right but drawing the inference that this misinformation is deliberately designed to target brown people is a wild leap – a conspiracy you might say. I would wager with equal certainty its targeted at people of low IQ and or discernment – something that spans both ends of the political spectrum and is agnostic of race and class.

          Tina infers the ultimate goal of this misinformation is to turn brown people xenophobic thereby diminishing the status of white folk as colonizers and creating discord among brown people because even discord is white privileged. This is little but subjective conjecture and the machinations of a rampant victim complex.

          There are countless credible articles that suggest the spread of these memes are of Russian origin. Their intent is likely to destabilize democracy, something that Putin indisputably seeks; there is a wealth of high profile evidence to corroborate this. With a little thought, this makes much more sense than a wild assertion that this is designed to create discord that will affect brown people disproportionately and give rise to white supremacy.

          Tina lambastes the media for being racist, with little context for doing so. The study cited uses a sample technique known to create bias – snowballing, furthermore the researcher leads the participants to their conclusions with a method that is equivalent to showing a bunch of white folk news clips about white privilege then asking them if they felt poorly characterized — well, duh! this is then used to assert that media in general are racist.

          Tina then rails against the government for being illegitimate and implies the U.N. is worthless because its also a white power structure.

          How is this not a conspiracy theory? its not grounded in reality, it cherry picks facts and weaves together disparate concepts to create the perception of intent which simply isn’t supported by evidence. Her article reads like a hit piece against white people and white establishments, blaming them for everything while simultaneously excusing Maori gullibility because of government persecution.

          Her article is clearly and deliberately race baiting for the sheer sake of it.

          Also, Kheala, just because someone disagrees, does not make them a troll – i genuinely don’t think people should be given a platform to espouse ideas like this unchallenged. I thoroughly read her article and most of its citations and felt the need to speak out.

          • The Koroneihanga ( King Tuheitia coronation) is not going ahead as scheduled instead will be streamed via Facebook at a later time, tangihanga (funerals) are still limited to 100 people with special laws to incarcerate those deemed to be “ill,” that all bothers me. The allowing of others into the country is regulated by the Govt, not the public, definitely not Maori. Closing the few roads into our rohe (Maori territories) fixes that.

      • Trolls ain’t got no reference links…

        Here, by Tina Ngata: The rise of Maori MAGA

        Excerpt:
        Predictably, straight after his election, Trump went about removing protections to native estates and national parks, defunding or disestablishing environmental regulatory units and research programmes, and approving pipelines and deregulating the oil, gas, and plastics industry.

        As I watched the multitudes of working class people proudly sport their red MAGA caps and swallow the conspiracy theories and Trump’s promise to “drain the swamp”, I never considered that the same thing could happen here.

        Little did we know that more immediate horrors were to eventuate as Covid-19 took hold. Last week, the US was no longer reporting deaths per day, or even per hour. They moved to reporting per minute. The poor, the Indigenous, and the communities of colour are being hit the hardest. From all the way over here, in our safe little bubble of Aotearoa, Trump’s America seems a million miles away.

        You’d be forgiven for thinking we’d all like to keep it that way.

  2. Look even journos spin bs narratives too. The good ones understand how to present a story with facts, evidence, balanced view points, a context and maybe some history to go with it without prejudice or bias. That does not happen very often these days. Most of the good journalists have been retired or made redundant for the news Influencer generation of writers who make a lot of shit up from their own personal perspective.

  3. Discuss the weapons of mass destruction that Iraq supposedly possessed at the turn of the century, the five eyes conspiracy theory that sent hundreds of thousands of innocent people (maybe more) to their deaths

  4. The internet is a great tool, indispensable in fact. But it can’t be controlled – without some fairly draconian limits being setup by Google, Facebook and all the rest. We won’t see these applied anytime soon because all the nutters out there will start a riot when they cannot bully and misinform people with there twisted theories. It’s not just the flat earthers and contrail experts, a subset like school kid bullies cause enormous damage as well. Most of it is sheer ignorance of the real world facts. NZ is a free country, just look at China or better still go and live there for a while, then come back and tell us all how oppressive NZ is.

    • greenbus – nz is not a free country – there are no free countries . hard not to comment on your assertion of ignorance and lack of real world facts being to blame yet you spell chemtrails wrongly – i wonder if you have actually looked at a range of info around some of these theories and made your own decision ? I suggest you haven’t because it’s either that or you have refused to accept it for some psychological/survival reason because the majority of the major theories have been long since been proven true wether u like it or not.
      you also mention china and freedom – yes NZ is more free but if you can’t see we are on the same path just few steps behind then you are the problem. for what it is worth greenbus – a test for u Q. how many buildings collapsed when world trade centre was demolished ?

      • Relic, your twisted brain is awash with the over confidence of one that thinks he knows everything. Try and sort out your own head before lecturing others. Answers:

        NZ ‘is’ a free country. No you can’t run around with no pants on, but that doesn’t mean we are controlled by communist dictators. World wars were fought for the freedoms we enjoy. Not enjoying it Relic? Try the middle east somewhere, get a dose of reality.

        Contrails not Chemtrails Relic. There’s no such thing as Chemtrails, not behind the passenger airliners anyway. Yes I have researched this, not that it needs looking into. Doesn’t exist mate, only crackpots on facebook making up this utter crap. Those whitish trails behind big planes are – (Contrails (/ˈkɒntreɪlz/; short for “condensation trails”) or vapour trails are line-shaped clouds produced by aircraft engine exhaust or changes in air pressure, typically at aircraft cruising altitudes several miles above the Earth’s surface. Contrails are composed primarily of water, in the form of ice crystals. Wikipedia. This is just one sample of the reality, lots more if you look. Everyone from Nasa to Boeing say the same thing. Don’t believe it? Well that’s up to you.

        Ignorance. All the real facts are out there. But you’ve got to read, watch and listen to
        creditable news outlets. I know several conspiracy theorists. Never watch the news, never read real news stories etc, don’t know what’s going on at all. That’s Ignorance.

        China. Why do you think we are following them? Seeing some of your freedoms evapourate during Covid 19? Yeah well, join the club mate. A necessary precaution which will be lifted when the current outbreak is contained. The Govt doesn’t want to contain us, the people. It’s the virus they want to contain, but you won’t understand that bit will you. Much better if it’s all a big conspiracy to control us aye.

        “the majority of the major theories have been long since been proven true wether u like it or not.” Horseshit! Proven by who? What are they?

        The North Tower, South Tower, the Marriott Hotel (3 WTC), and 7 WTC were destroyed. The U.S. Customs House (6 World Trade Center), 4 World Trade Center, 5 World Trade Center, and both pedestrian bridges connecting buildings were severely damaged. Wikipedia.

        I haven’t been there, ground zero as they say, but I believe these are the facts.

  5. Great short vid that lays out the main issues related to conspiracy fans annoying friends and whanau online. Every issue imaginable from 1080, 5G, antivaxx, through to “Plandemic” and the Rothschilds!

    John Minto’s article this week on TDB, pointed out many Conspiracy Theorists who are so easily labeled “nutters”, are in many cases exploited, victims of the state, alienated, and they can also be well meaning in terms of seeking solutions. People who have suffered and have little faith in the capitalist Pākehā state, and have not employed critical thinking to what they discover online. Algorithms lead them deeper into the murk, ultimately often traceable to neo-Nazis and white supremacists.

    Enter Billy TK and some very dodgy people indeed whom he channels. There is a classic “the leaders and the miss lead” dichotomy created by these opportunists. Everyone has their own tactic of how to deal with conspiracy pests online and in real life. Basically if they are Billy TKs, give them arseholes, make the links to their racist sources. If they are people that mean something to you, be more conciliatory to a point, don’t just block straight away.

    Religious fervour on various conspiracies from some Māori individuals amounts to a slap down for veteran Māori rights fighters and populations from places such as Ruatoria who know all about what the state forces are capable of. Show positive examples, better ways of fighting and engaging in political struggle than running with opportunists. It is an issue that a lot more people will be grappling with in the next few months.

  6. There is a difference between theory and opinion. Are you suggesting that Brown Boy Kiwis cannot distinguish between opinion and theory? Sharing an “opinion” is not a conspiracy, it is merely pointing out the holes in the mainstream narrative. What a shame how you keep men quiet.

    • Not when they’re been indoctrinated and assimilated by white mans voodoo, religious poison. The missionaries brought that shit here.

  7. Billy the Kid is preying on people especially some of our uneducated ones. He is telling people including many of our Maori whanau, we need to take our country back. Well for starters he has JL Ross by his side not exactly an ideal partner when JLR was in a party that was complicit in doing that very thing.

  8. Billy the Kid is preying on people especially some of our uneducated ones. He is telling people including many of our Maori whanau, we need to take our country back. Well for starters he has JL Ross by his side not exactly an ideal partner when JLR was in a party that was complicit in doing that very thing.

  9. Billy the Kid is preying on people especially some of our uneducated ones. He is telling people including many of our Maori whanau, we need to take our country back. Well for starters he has JL Ross by his side not exactly an ideal partner when JLR was in a party that was complicit in doing that very thing.

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