Shermer may not use the term, but he now offers one of the most comprehensive ‘inoculations’ available in his ‘Skepticism 101’ course at Chapman University.43 The first steps, he says, are like ‘kicking the tyres and checking under the hood’ of a car. ‘Who’s making the claim? What’s the source? Has someone else verified the claim? What’s the evidence? How good is the evidence? Has someone tried to debunk the evidence?’ he told me. ‘It’s basic baloney detection.’ Like the other psychologists I have spoken to, he is certain that the vivid, real-life examples of misinformation are crucial to
...more
