IN PRAISE OF PUNDITA<\/b><\/p>\n
I have to direct you to two of Pundita’s<\/strong> <\/a>posts, both of which are well done and, frankly are illuminating, though in different ways:<\/p>\n First, is her post ( forgive the self-referential nature here) that follows up on EMPs<\/a>. Not so much because of the importance of EMP weapons which were being overhyped but in Pundita’s superb advice on being a critical consumer of news as she dissects the trajectory of the EMP ” story”:<\/p>\n “So what does it all mean? It means that the consumer of news has to learn to think like an old-school reporter–a reporter well-trained in ferreting out the traditional Four W’s of a story: <\/span><\/em><\/strong> One of my mentors as a historian was an old and crusty, toughminded, Social-Democrat. He never thought that Stalin was anything but a bastard and that the Revisionist New Left historians, most of whom he knew personally, were fooling themselves to some extent. I recall his curt admonishment to a young, zealous, graduate student who was going a tad overboard in reporting on an author whose conclusions he, and most likely my mentor, agreed with politically.<\/p>\n ” Be the careful when you read something that makes you feel good…because that’s when we have a tendency to stop thinking “.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
Who (said or did it)?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
What (what was said or done)?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
Where (where was it said or done)?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
When (when was it said or done)?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
There is also the “H” (How did it come about?) if the reporter has space for it in the report.But given the skill of today’s disinformation specialists and the general low quality of reporting, I insert an “I” in my list:<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
Who? <\/span><\/em><\/strong>
What? <\/span><\/em><\/strong>
In What Context?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
Where?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
When?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
How?<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
<\/span><\/em><\/strong>
Asking yourself in what context something is said helps you quickly spot where in the story you’ve been napping.”<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n