Obama Warns Against Irresponsible Social Media Use (bbc.com)

In his first interview since leaving the White House in January, former President Barack Obama spoke about the dangers of irresponsible use of social media. From a report on BBC: He warned that such actions were distorting people's understanding of complex issues, and spreading misinformation. "All of us in leadership have to find ways in which we can recreate a common space on the internet," he said. The former president expressed concern about a future where facts are discarded and people only read and listen to things that reinforce their own views. "One of the dangers of the internet is that people can have entirely different realities. They can be cocooned in information that reinforces their current biases. The question has to do with how do we harness this technology in a way that allows a multiplicity of voices, allows a diversity of views, but doesn't lead to a Balkanisation of society and allows ways of finding common ground," he said.

Comments

cat tongues are like sandpaper

[rmdingler]

It's difficult for me to admit, but this comment is lucid and downright Presidential compared to what comes out of the Oval Office currently.

Man, he used "Balkanisation" properly

[Lisandro]

The contrast with the current administration is so depressingly stark...

Re:Said...

[drinkypoo]

Obama would quickly take the side of a black person on any white vs black incident, way before any facts came out. He sure as hell created division.

[citation needed]

No, children, I am not trolling

[drinkypoo]

I really do want a citation which shows that Obama took the side of black people before facts came out. If your position cannot survive requests for clarification, then it is garbage. In this case, trolling, racist garbage.

Re:No, children, I am not trolling

[drinkypoo]

"The police acted stupidly." -- BHO

They did act stupidly, and what's more, they acted like racist fuckbags. And we need to be calling them out on it, and they know they are in the wrong! Here, let me provide as evidence an article on the subject from Faux News. Why would I want to do such a thing? Because amongst their long list of repudiations from police (as if they were in any way relevant) there are absolutely zero counterarguments against Obama's statement which do not boil down rapidly to "we don't like to say bad things about police, and we don't like it when you say bad things about police, because we are police." Obama did make his statement with the "benefit of the facts", one of which is that black people are unfairly profiled and targeted for harassment because of the color of their skin.

Followed by a "beer summit" to try to play it off.

I googled beer summit and I discovered the following:

An independent panel with experts from across the nation published a report on June 30, 2010, which states that "Sergeant Crowley and Professor Gates each missed opportunities to 'ratchet down' the situation and end it peacefully" and share responsibility for the controversial July 16 arrest. Crowley could have better explained how uncertain and potentially dangerous it is to respond to a serious crime-in-progress call and why this can result in a seemingly rude tone. Gates could have tried to understand Crowley's view of the situation and could have spoken respectfully to Crowley. The report cites research that shows people's feelings about a police encounter depend significantly on whether they feel the officer displays respect and courtesy.

IOW, an independent panel found that Gates acted inappropriately. "Do as you're told and you won't get shot" is a message for hostages, not citizens. Which do you consider yourself?

Re: Said...

[HornWumpus]

Your guy makes 'bad decisions', the other side has 'scandals'. That is the 'different'.