Ask A Genius 1178: On Pre-Bunking
Author(s): Rick Rosner and Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): Ask A Genius
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2024/11/13
*Interview conducted in November, 2024.*
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: So, I was doing a training session in journalism and came across a cool concept I hadn’t heard of before: pre-bunking. It’s like inoculating people by giving them bits of misinformation and having them reflect on it. Think of it like when you look at an AI-generated image and notice the teeth are off or it has four fingers with an extra joint.
Rick Rosner: Yes, if we had done this with Trump ahead of time, it could have changed things. Instead, we did the opposite of pre-bunking with him. He had a TV show that portrayed him as a business genius, which ran for 15 years. It was all an illusion, but it built this image.
If people had been told the truth about some of Trump’s actions back in 2015 or 2016, before they bought into the persona, it might have reduced his base. Now, no matter what he does, his base finds ways to rationalize or justify it. I remember learning about advertising in 6th grade—there was a one-week section on the ways ads mislead, which instilled some skepticism. Plus, growing up with Mad Magazine, which mocked everything, was another way to build that kind of mental defense.
But now, Trump’s supporters—30 to 40 million of them—are impervious to everything. I assume they fall for scams related to donations or Trump merchandise, but outside of the Trump bubble, they might be less gullible. Within that sphere, though, they’re immune to debunking or pre-bunking or any form of critical thinking.
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