Viewpoint: Social media’s herd mentality undermines how we view farming and food

The information superhighway has many potholes to navigate and treacherous off ramps that will result in people getting lost on their voyage to truth if they’re not careful.

That message was hammered home by Cami Ryan, a behavioural/social scientist who is senior business partner of industry affairs with Bayer Crop Science Canada and has been studying the impacts of misinformation/disinformation and consumer perceptions of agriculture for nearly 30 years.

[G]ravitating to information that confirms biases is a trait that is found in everyone. Hesitating to stray from familiar social circles that are comfortable can be a matter of social survival.

“In today’s world, this kind of herd mentality we have manifests itself in echo chambers in social media. This is where we are most susceptible to misinformation, particularly regarding farming and food production.”

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This dynamic presents hurdles that producers have difficulty overcoming when the general public believes sometimes outrageous things about farming.

This is an excerpt. Read the original post here