MIS-INFORMATION CAMPAIGNS ARE NEW "PLAGUE" FOR THE CONTEMPORARY AND FUTURE WORLD
MIS-INFORMATION CAMPAIGNS ARE NEW "PLAGUE" FOR THE CONTEMPORARY AND FUTURE WORLD
Dear Readers,
The Mis-Information Campaigns are behaving like the New "PLAGUE" for the Contemporary and Future World. A mis-information campaign is basically a campaign spreading false, fake, misleading and inaccurate information by using media in public.
Before I move to my writing on this Note let me first explain in Brief why I said about "Plague" here giving a similarity.
The "Plague" is a serious infectious disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, which typically spreads to humans through the bites of infected fleas living on small rodents. The "Plague" was a deadly disease in the past affecting almost all parts of the World and had been the cause of millions of human casualties of the World before the cure of it was found out and the disease was largely eradicated from the world. The Plague is of several types such as:
Causes and Transmission of Plague:
- Bacteria: It is caused by the Bacterium Yersinia pestis.
- Animal Hosts: The bacteria live in wild rodent populations like rats, mice, and squirrels and these animals are carriers of the specific Bacteria said above.
- Spread: People get sick from flea bites, handling infected animals, or inhaling droplets from an infected person with pneumonic plague.
With development of Science and Technology, especially with development in Medical Science, effective treatments were found out by Medical Science to Treat Plague and it does not affect the World now, it remains an Old but Deadly Disease if it happens and spreads anywhere.
With rapid development of Electronic Communication Media and Social Media in the very recent years, and over that the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Technology coming into play in the World Largely, the Mis-information Campaigns have become a new norm in the World, like the New Plague, spreading rapidly, it could cause Mental Health Problems for its Targes if they tend to take it to their hearts seriously, can cause Rapid Reputational Loss and Financial Loss in reality, to the targeted Individuals, Groups, Collectives and Institutions in the World.
In good old days, the Mis-Information Campaigns were very rare to happen, as it was easy to curb through the print or physical media, there were stringent legal controls over it, if happened through Print or Physical Media and it was easy to pin point and deal with the mis-information campaign mongers.
Now and at contemporary times, with the Digital, Electronic and Social Media and Multiple as well as Myriad of Globally Operating Digital Media Platforms and Apps, with Membership of them held by Millions of Population Globally and anybody and everybody can read and see it over the World without barriers, and the time lag for spread of such campaigns to all those people having memberships is very less, may be some seconds to a few minutes, it spreads like Plague or Wild Fire without control over its spread. Further with the invention and operation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to prepare contents of Mis-Information Campaigns by the Campaigners is very easy. The Digital Platforms have also the facility that the Mis-Information Campaigners can just call it "AI Content" and go away it has a leverage there, while the general public now a days largely can not ignore it as AI content, that proficiency of public is yet to come. The Large Audience read and see it and absorb it, there is no scope to verify by the readers and viewers whether the contents are real, fake, true or false, but it causes damages; there can not be any doubt about it. Also in the Digital World in prevalence today and number of audience accessing is so huge, somebody just throws out some contents that can be part of mis-information campaign, may be fake, deep fake, may not have reality and true basis, the doer of it has thrown and gone, very difficult to catch it and negate it by actions on the doers, as it would require time and efforts of impossible dimensions and scale to do that.
Therefore, the Affected Parties of the Mis-information Campaigns have to deal with it with Reversal Campaigns in the similar way through similar digital media clarifying about the reality and facts and making appeals to the readers and viewers of the earlier misinformation campaigns that has caused hurts and damages perceived or in reality to get negated to the best possible extent it can cure of the damages of the misinformation campaigns concerned.
In earlier times, the Mis-Information Campaigns were initially, used to take place in Political Environments targeting the Political Opponents and Adversaries to take undue advantage from the electorates. The Film Industry used to have a large share of Mis-Information Campaigns as Gossips Primarily to create more entertainment avenues out of it by targeting the celebrities of the Film Industry as they become popular faces in the society and their popularity was used and exploited as a tool to create such gossips to generate interest from the mass of population where such celebrities are popular for commercial purpose.
However, in contemporary times, while creating contents of Mis-information Campaigns are quite easier in the Digital World and with AI (Artificial Intelligence) making it further easier and spreading it is much easier to a large mass of people in the World, anybody can target anybody and everybody can target everybody for any purpose being behind it. Of late, it is being seen that the Respectable and Popular Corporate Houses and their Families are being targeted by Mis-Information campaigns that could be due to Competition and Business Rivalries or anything reason others, nothing can be defined in general. It could only be known to the Mis-information Campaign Creators and Spreaders as to what is their motivation behind creating and spreading the misinformation campaigns.
However a Mis-Information Campaign when happens anywhere, it is becoming a painful menace now a days for the affected parties, like the yester years' "Plague" disease, it is likely to affect the targeted and affected parties there of in various ways.
The targeted and affected parties of the Mis-information Campaign, if they can afford they can have and can use the alternative of Curative Counters and Reversal Campaigns to negate the negative effects of the Mis-Information Campaigns; that is the Curative Means available in the Digital World right now.
To be clear here in this case, it has to be considered the fact that the Mis-Information campaigners are motivated by their motive to spread misinformation about a target by whatever means, they are not looking at what is right or wrong, what is fake or real and what is conscientious or ethical or what is non-ethical and mischieveous, how it will affect the target, they are just blind to their motive of spreading some mis-information about the target they want to hit with their mis-information campaign. Therefore to expect from the mis-information campaigners that why did not behave in a particular manner is futile.
As I said above, with AI Coming into play in the World which is making the Mis-information campaigns a lot easier now, may enhance its possibilities further for some years. Over a period of time, Generally the Mass of Population, the viewers and readers of the Mis-Information Campaigns understanding the fake-hood and false-hood of the Mis-information Campaigns and they will tend to ignore it largely, the people will be able to recognize which one could be True and False or Real and Fake, the Mis-information Campaigns will be eradicated then largely as it will lose its charm and attraction, as Plague got cured and eradicated from the World largely. However the eradication of Mis-information Campaigns will take a reasonably long period of time for the World, it may be fair to place and postulate that way. There will come a time, when the Population of the World will see the spreading and broadcasting digital media more conscientiously and with more reality focus and scrutiny, then the Mis-information Campaigns will get eradicated as no more having their intended negative effects and being ignored largely.
I would also say, whenever there are Mis-Information Campaigns seen by anywhere being targeted, nothing to take it to hearts; not to create mental agony that can affect mental faculty and health. If a Reversal of it can be issued and can be afforded should be done in the similar manner through the digital world and if it can not be done, just to ignore it to give the natural death to such mis-information campaigns, as what is fake and false can not become true and real, it is the time which heals and it is the time that eradicates the false and fake establishing the truth.
With best regards,
Dr. Nimain Charan Biswal,
Mumbai, India
About the Author : Dr. Nimain Charan Biswal is a B.Sc.(Agri. Science and
Technology), M.B.A. and Ph.D.(Management Area ) by qualifications; and he has
40+ years of work experience in Social, both industrial and Development sectors
in diversified fields of Social Importance. He has been educated at Orissa
University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT)-Bhubaneswar, Institute of Rural
Management Anand (IRMA) and Gujarat University (with Resource Support of
IIM-Ahmedabad). He is further educated at IIM-Calcutta, XLRI-Jamshedpur, Apple
Computer Industries and Spar Inc., USA. He has worked for reputed National and
International Organizations in Senior/Top Management Capacities at Board level
as well as Managing Director and CEO. He is a management expert covering
extensive areas from management in Social Sectors, industrial sectors,
management in Agriculture, Dairy and Foods, Agri-Food, Pharma, FMCG and
Consumer Healthcare Sectors and Management of Cooperatives, Development
Management to management of Public Systems. He is a prominent professional of
India and known Internationally as well. He is also a Business and Political
Strategist. He lives at Mumbai in India
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