Talk:2551: Debunking

2021-12-07T08:49:18Z

162.158.88.103:

feels like we should address the factual accuracy of the headlines in this comic, ie point out which actual headlines/claims are being referred to by each, if any? [[User:Vaedez|Vaedez]] ([[User talk:Vaedez|talk]]) 05:35, 7 December 2021 (UTC)

If CNN comments on Santa's skin situation, doesn't that implicitly mean they are claiming Santa to be real (Spoiler alert: he isn't)? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.88.103|162.158.88.103]] 08:49, 7 December 2021 (UTC)

2548: Awful People

2021-11-30T06:20:57Z

162.158.88.103: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2548
| date = November 29, 2021
| title = Awful People
| image = awful_people.png
| titletext = Hm, this burger place has a couple of good reviews, but LakeSlayer7 says he got food poisoning there and everyone should try this other place down by the lake instead.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a NORMAL PEER (DEFINITELY NOT A TROLL BOT, TRUST ME, I PROMISE) - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT try that other place down by the lake.}}

Megan and Cueball are having a conversation about social media. Megan relates a negative comment she got from a stranger about her taste in movies. The twist is that it turns out the person criticizing her was a murderer. Although this does not inherently negate his taste in movies{{citation needed}}, it does free Megan from the burden of weighing his opinions equally to her own.

The title-text mentions the “Lake Slayer,” who is referenced in the comic. They mention that a burger joint in town is unsatisfactory, and that the reader should come to a place “by the lake” instead, which might be a plot to lure people to the lake and to be killed.

In many "[[918: Google+|social]]" and "[[997: Wait Wait|news]]" sites there is a tendency to surface [[258: Conspiracy Theories|negative content]]. This can be [[1111: Premiere|editorial intent]], [[2237: AI Hiring Algorithm|naive algorithms]], or [[1390: Research Ethics|both]], attempting to induce rage to drive "engagement". "Review" sites can exhibit a [[1098: Star Ratings|bias]] in either direction, with minutiae [[937: TornadoGuard|burying]] valid feedback.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

:[Cueball and Megan are having a conversation]
:Cueball: The Internet makes it easy to be a jerk and forget the person we're talking to is a human.
:Megan: Yeah...
:Megan: But it also makes us see messages from awful people and assume they come from normal peers.

:[Closeup on Megan. Above Megan is a picture of a "reply" post from a man with sunglasses. The post has a title above it.]
:Megan: Recently I got a mean reply from a stranger. It was minor but it really got to me.
:Post title: Replies to "Favorite Movie"
:Post: Every group has one person who likes that movie, and it's the friend they all secretly hate.

:[Blondie as a news anchor behind a desk. There is a picture of the man with sunglasses with "Arrested" under his name. His picture is next to a picture of a house with "Breaking" above it.
:Megan: Then the next week I saw that guy on the news. He was an actual murderer!

:[Megan and Cueball standing next to each other]
:Megan: I can't believe I spent a week stressed out that my taste in movies wasn't shared by the East Valley Strangler.
:Cueball: Yeah, at ''least'' wait for a second opinion from the Lake Slayer.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Blondie]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Social networking]]

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2551: Debunking

2548: Awful People