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Home My WebLink AboutClinton News Record, 2016-12-07, Page 44 News Record • Wednesday, December 7, 2016 II1 i' www.clintonnewsrecord.com NowsCl Record PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 53 Albert St. P.O. 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Ad- vertising is merely an offer to sell, and may be withdrawn at anytime. The Clinton News -Record is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproducing purposes. Publications Mail Agreement No.40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES: CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT 53 Albert St., Clinton ON NOM 1L0 (519) 482-3443 Clinton News Record is a member of the National Newsmedia Council, which is an independent ethical organization established to deal with editorial concerns. For more information or to file a complaint go to www.mediacouncil.ca or call toll free 1-844-877-1163. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada gcna Member of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and the Ontario Community Newspapers Association We're all warriors in battle for truth You may not have noticed, but the Oxford English Dictionary has declared "post -truth" the word of the year for 2016. Post -truth is defined as "relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential hi shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief." It sounds dry, but it refers to a pro- foundly dangerous trend. There's never been a shortage of fake information, whether in check- out -line tabloids or through the duplicity of The New Republic maga- zine's Stephen Glass or The Washing- ton Post's Janet Cooke. But the speed and reach of social media, and the low level of media literacy among some consumers, make today's lies particu- larly troubling. Some current fabrica- tions are both clever and nearlybeliev able -- such as the widely repeated claim that the Pope had endorsed Donald Trump. The trend to falsehood has infused even some scientific publications. Lay readers could be completely deceived by publishers who run more or less whatever's submitted, without the rig- ours ofpeer review. Postmedia recently reported that two respected Canadian medical journal chains have now been pur- chased by a company with a reputa- tion for publishing fake research. He has also uncovered other fakery in the science journal business, by sub- mitting academically nonsensical articles to 18 academic journals. Eight took the bait, and one Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images President-elect Donald Trump walks through the lobby of the New York Times following a meeting with editors at the paper on November 22, 2016 in New York City. publishing group even asked our reporter to join its editorial board. This science -journal rubbish allows shifty academics to pump up their credentials while unscrupulous journals rake in profits. Honest bro- kers are also harmed: ethical researchers risk being scammed by the clever frauds. Respectable jour- nals need to fight back. If you con- sider the damage done to public health by shoddy claims that vaccines are dangerous, you get some insight into why fake science articles are a problem. There are consequences to our world when truth is no longer respected, but must compete with the work of fabulists. In the fake -sci- ence world, fighting back means calling on known, established publi- cations to rigorously ensure quality peer review and research. In the wider world of general information and social media, it means closely watching what you see, not simply retweeting it based on confirmation bias. It means chal- lenging the sources of those info tid- bits flung casually your way. It requires cautious, critical thinking. We all have a role to play in the fight against a "post -truth" world. - Postmedia Network FROM THE ARCHIVES 15 years ago... • A woman with an inspiring story to tell offered a "heartfelt" thanks to two Huron County para- medics and several lifeguards from the Vanastra pool at a session of County Council. Angela Berard was swimming at the Vanastra pool with her two youngsters when she suffered a cardiac arrest and slipped under the water. Chocking back emotions at the council meeting, she had thanked the paramedics and lifeguards for being part of her "chain of survival." 25 years ago... • A handful of Goderich Township residents were worried about the possibility that contami- nants might leake from a proposed landfill site and poison their wells. There were six candidate sites for the landfill for Huron County. • The messy weather was a contributing factor to two of four accidents. Due to slippery ice, when a 1986 Dodge tried pulling into a parking space, it slid and hit a parked 1984 Ford. The other accident occurred when a van slid out of the driveway and collided with an oncoming vehicle. No one was hurt, and no charges were made as there was very little damage to either vehicle. 35 years ago... • More than 15 business owners in Clinton and area had agreed that shoplifting was on the increase, a News -Record survey had shown, because of a combination of factors. Mr. Balfour noted that high school students aren't only to blame for the problem, but more teenagers were spending their time in stores because of free time due to the change in 70 minutes lunches and spares. • Many of the Clinton Area Volunteer Fire Brigade was out battling chimney fires. An overheated chimney pipe started a fire in a home's attic near Holmesville. There were also trash bin fires. The Fire Chief said that trouble could be more easily prevented if people had cleaned their chimneys often, like they're supposed to. • A Clinton man was killed in the Domtar Sifto Salt Mine when the truck he was driving fell back- wards over a 20 -foot embankment, which crushed the cab. Wayne Powell was the second fatality vic- tim at the mine in the span of three weeks. Thoughts, observations or concerns about this community? Thoughts, observations or concerns about this community? Share them with Clinton and the surrounding area. Email your letters to the editor to Justine at jalkema@postmedia.com. Any opinions expressed in a letter to the editor reflect those of the writer and not those of the Clinton News Record. The Clinton News Record retains the rights to edit letters to the editor. 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