Watching Fox News Could Kill You.

Fox News is the number one cable news network.  While its prime time audience of 2.9 million viewers pales in comparison to major network shows (Big Bang draws 18.5 million) it is still a very impressive number.  (Caruso, 2020)

So I was horrified to read that a 2012 study by Fairleigh Dickinson University found that those who watch Fox News regularly are less well informed than people who watch no news at all.  Even those who get their news from comedy shows like The Daily Show knew more about current events than Fox viewers.  Yikes.

But here's the really scary part.  Misinformation can be dangerous. 

During the 2009-2010 swine flu epidemic, Democrats and Republicans initially expressed equal levels of concern.  But then the folks at Fox started in with their conspiracy theories.  Glen Beck even told his followers to do the exact opposite of what the administration recommended and skip the flu shot.  (Kristof, 2019)

As a result of this misleading propaganda, Democrats were 50% more likely to seek vaccinations than Republicans.

18,000 people died. 

So yes, where you get your news from could be a matter of life or death.

Caruso, J. (2020, January 28)  Fox News Primetime Ratings For January 2020 Highest Since November 2016.  dailycaller.com.  Retrieved January 29, 2020, from

https://dailycaller.com/2020/01/28/fox-news-ratings-win-january-2020/

Cassino, D., Woolley, P., Jenkins, K. (2012, May 3)  What you know depends on what you watch: Current events knowledge across popular news sources.  fdu.edu Retrieved January 29, 2020, from

http://publicmind.fdu.edu/2012/confirmed/

Kristof, N. (2019, November 16)  Fox News? More Like Trump's Impeachment Shield. nytimes.com.  Retrieved January 29, 2020, from  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/16/opinion/sunday/fox-news-donald-trump.html

Have you given up on your New Year's resolutions yet?

January 19th was "Quitter's Day."

According to new research from Strava the go-to site for uploaded exercise activity, 80% of people who make New Year's resolutions give them up by January 19th, hence the name "Quitter's Day."  (Haden, 2020)

I smiled when I read that because I had noticed the same thing based on my experiences in various health clubs.  But it does make me wonder if non-athletic resolutions have a longer shelf-life. 

Probably not.

Why?  Because it's hard to change.  Change frightens us, because we are always afraid of what we will lose.   And given the chance, after we change, we will go back to the status quo as soon as we can.

So what's the solution?  Think in terms of small sustainable changes.

So the couch potato who never works out, joins a gym, and swims every day is doomed.  On the other hand, the person who creates a new routine, by getting off the bus a stop early and walking home from there, can be successful. It's all about replacing one routine with another.

Give it a shot and maybe next year you won't be a quitter.

Haden J. (2020, January 3)  A Study Of 800 Million Activities Predicts Most New Year's Resolutions Will Be Abandoned On January 19: How To Create New Habits That Actually Stick.  inc.com.  Retrieved January 22, 2020, from  https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/a-study-of-800-million-activities-predicts-most-new-years-resolutions-will-be-abandoned-on-january-19-how-you-cancreate-new-habits-that-actually-stick.html

Because of fake news - 1,282 Americans got the measles last year.

Globally the numbers are even worse, with 10 million cases and 140,000 deaths in 2018.  And the 2019 totals will top those since cases rose by 300% in the first three months of the year.  (Who, 2019)

So how did a preventable disease that was declared eliminated in the U.S. in 2000 make a comeback?  Sheer stupidity.   That's right.  Anti-vaxers are both stupid and a danger to society.

Of course it all started with a fraud. His name is Andrew Wakefield.  He published his fake news story complete with false data about 12 children, in a medical journal in 1998, in an effort to extort money from vaccine makers.

 

The poorly vetted journal - The Lancet - retracted the paper in 2010.  And Wakefield's license to practice medicine was revoked for his "dishonest and irresponsible behavior."  But the damage was already done.  (Park, 2010)

Thanks to the Dunning-Kruger effect - that's the one where stupid people don't realize how stupid they are - idiots like Jessica Biel, who did not even go to college think that they know more than doctors and researchers with multiple degrees. 

And sadly, thanks to the halo effect, people tend to think pretty people are smart too, so many people believe her, despite her lack of credentials. 

But clearly none of them know how to read.  Here's a link to an NIH article that attempts to set the record straight.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1071313/

Unfortunately research tells us that the truth doesn't work when you are dealing with fake news.  Coincidentally that research was done based on measles.  And what did it show?  That the only thing that moves the needle is photos of sick and dying children.  Why?  Because scaring people does work. (Pinker, 2016)

So it's time to start putting those pictures out there.   People's lives could depend upon it.  Oh and a few more laws forcing parents to vaccinate couldn't hurt either.

https://www.cdc.gov/measles/cases-outbreaks.html

(2019, August) Global measles outbreaks make 2019 a record setting year.  Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Retrieved January 16, 2020, from

http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2019/08/global-measles-outbreaks-make-2019-record-setting-year

Park, A.  (2010, May 24) Doctor behind vaccine-autism link loses license.  time.com.  Retrieved January 16, 2020, from  https://healthland.time.com/2010/05/24/doctor-behind-vaccine-autism-link-loses-license/

Pinker, S. (2016, March 12)  The Peril of Ignoring Vaccines - and a Solution. wsj.com.  Retrieved January 16, 2020, from  https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-peril-of-ignoring-vaccinesand-a-solution-1457537743

Democratic Presidential candidates out raised Trump 3:1 in 4th Quarter 2019

Democrats raised $137 million in 4th quarter 2019, compared to $46 million for Trump.  Those are the facts.

But depending where you get your news from, you might have gotten a totally different impression about what happened because it's all about the spin.

According to Newsweek:  "Donald Trump Raised More Money Than All Top Democrats." Factually true, but essentially misleading. (Touchberry, 2020)

The New York Times headline was: "Cash-Rich Democrats..." That sounds a bit more accurate.

The Times also provided a few more details, like the fact that Sanders' $34.5 million total was the largest sum for any Democrat in any quarter so far.  And that Sanders, Biden and Yang all had their best quarters to date.  (Goldmacher & Kaplan, 2020)

That certainly paints a very different picture from the one presented by Newsweek.

Just another reminder that words matter, as does the reliability of your sources.  And don't forget to read the fine print.  The devil is in the details.

Touchberry, R. (2020, January 2)  Donald Trump Raised More Money Than All Top Democratic Presidential Opponents In Last Quarter Of 2019.  newsweek.com.  Retrieved January 8, 2020, from

https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-raised-more-money-all-top-democratic-presidential-opponents-last-quarter-2019-1480089

Goldmacher, S. & Kaplan, T. (2020, January 2) Cash Rich Democrats Brace for Long Fight as Trump Hoards Money.  nytimes.com.  Retrieved January 8, 2020, from

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/02/us/politics/q4-democratic-trump-fundraising.html