The Dangers of Misinformation as we Near an Election

SECRETARY-TREASURER’S MESSAGE

In recent elections here, and in the United States as well, we’ve witnessed interference from sources outside our borders. We’ve seen intentional misinformation go viral on social media with false statements and other bad information pretending to be real facts.

Advertisers, influencers, and of course, politicians, all want you on their social media platforms to share their posts, stories, and information.

Some organizations, including news outlets, and people have a clear opinion and good factual information, but others are most definitely trying to convince you of something, and some will use immoral tactics and bad ‘facts’ to do it.

As we head toward the federal election on September 20, it’s important that we each take the time to understand the different party platforms and ensure that the resources and information we use to form that understanding are factual and real.

Misinformation can be dangerous. A lot of people who share social media posts don’t actually read the article that accompanies the headline. The message – whatever it is – gets propelled with very few users actually knowing what they’re sharing.

We all know of people on social media who share things without reading, that hit like simply because of a headline or meme. These knee-jerk shares and interactions are what lead to a lot of the confusion and fake news out there.

No matter what your opinions on the issues are, misinformation doesn’t help anyone. Sometimes it’s hard to see the difference between opinion and fact, and the same facts can be shaped to support different opinions. But ultimately, no matter what anyone says, writes, or shares it’s up to each of us to do the work, understand the issues, and develop our own point of view.

This magazine has editorials. This is one of them. President Haggerty’s message is also an editorial. Items like the piece on the WSIB ‘surplus’ on page eight has an opinion that sides with injured workers over corporations. Our words in this magazine along with items posted on the Union’s website and social media are meant to offer an opinion from the perspective of what we consider to be important issues for working people.

You don’t have to agree with what’s said here. More than anything, we hope these messages inspire Members to dig further into the issues and to make important connections between politics, the economy, healthcare, employment, equality, and more.

What do you want to see for Canada as we move forward? Ultimately, it’s up to you to make sure that when you vote – and please, please vote – that the choice you make on the ballot truly reflects the best option that fits your beliefs.

In Solidarity,

Kelly Tosato treasurer@ufcw175.com