Editing 1712: Politifact
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| titletext = "Ok, I lit the smoke bomb and rolled it under the bed. Let's see if it--" ::FWOOOSH:: "Politifact says: PANTS ON FIRE!" | | titletext = "Ok, I lit the smoke bomb and rolled it under the bed. Let's see if it--" ::FWOOOSH:: "Politifact says: PANTS ON FIRE!" | ||
}} | }} | ||
+ | |||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete|Updated slightly, could probably use further overseeing.}} | |
+ | |||
+ | {{w|PolitiFact.com}} is a website that rates political claims based on how true they are. The rulings from the Truth-O-Meter™ at PolitiFact are: | ||
*True | *True | ||
*Mostly True | *Mostly True | ||
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*Pants on Fire! | *Pants on Fire! | ||
− | This comic presents a woman | + | This comic presents a woman pretending to come from PolitiFact.com, annoying people (in this case especially [[Megan]], but also her living partner [[Cueball]]), by rating everything they say on the Truth-O-Meter. When Megan, apparently just having gotten out of bed, says she had trouble sleeping, the PolitiFact.com woman (called PolitiFact from now on) appears at an open window and observes (directly to Megan's face) that she is telling the truth with the rating of "''Mostly True!''" (So according to PolitiFact she did not sleep well most of the night, but may have slept OK for some parts of the night...) |
− | + | Megan appears distressed, which is not improved when PolitiFact enters their house through the window, which caused Megan to chase after PolitiFact. They run by Cueball whose comment makes it clear that this is not the first time PolitiFact has been in their house like this, and he tells PolitiFact to get out. Megan even swears she had locked the window, which would imply that PolitiFact had opened a locked window (breaking and entering), but PolitiFact denies the claim with the rating of "''False!''", indicating that the window was not locked (not that this makes it acceptable to enter other peoples houses). | |
− | + | After the chase, PolitiFact ends up hiding under the couples bed; Cueball's claim that Politifact "can't stay under there forever" is promptly rated "''False''". Megan remarks, however, that no one likes Politifact, is rated "''Mostly True!''" This indicated that PolitiFact actually knows that what she/they do annoy most people, but she/they keep on doing it anyway. | |
− | + | The comic may be commenting on the fact that many people become very defensive when claims they make in political discussions are debunked by PolitiFact.com. There is a phenomenon where the people most influenced by an erroneous claim are the least likely to believe a fact checker. For example, The Washington Post [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2015/12/18/what-was-fake-on-the-internet-this-week-why-this-is-the-final-column/ shut down their internet rumor fact checker] because, "institutional distrust is so high right now, and cognitive bias so strong always, that the people who fall for hoax news stories are frequently only interested in consuming information that conforms with their views — even when it's demonstrably fake." Many people like the idea of a fact checker, until they disagree with it. | |
− | + | PolitiFact.com has been accused of being both [http://www.breitbart.com/big-journalism/2015/03/14/mostly-true-ted-cruz-attack-proves-politifact-is-run-by-gigantic-assholes/ liberally biased] and [http://www.rifuture.org/politifact-ri-once-again-shows-right-wing-bias.html conservatively biased] at various times and has angered politicians on both sides of the aisle. The summary statistic "rulings" are especially troublesome; often the critics will agree that the information presented by the fact check is correct, and may agree that all relevant information has been included, but will disagree as to the importance of context omitted by the original speaker or the interpretation of ambiguous language. Hence, the statement that no one likes PolitiFact is "mostly true". | |
− | PolitiFact.com | + | The title text makes a play on PolitiFact.com's most untrue rating, "Pants on Fire!" - a reference to the childhood accusation "{{w|Pants on Fire|Liar, liar, pants on fire!}}" |
− | + | As it is very likely that Cueball have a smoke bomb on his person, as shown in another comic with Megan and Cueball as a couple, see [[486: I am Not a Ninja]], it may be assumed that he says the first line in the title text, but it could also have been Megan, who seems even more eager to smoke her out. She could have borrowed the one Cueball has... | |
− | + | Cueball says that he lit a {{w|smoke bomb}} and rolled it under the bed near PolitiFact. When it goes off it was apparently near enough to ignite PolitiFact's pants - thus, PolitiFact's pants are ''literally'' on fire and she yells "PANTS ON FIRE!". | |
− | Alternatively | + | Alternatively (but maybe less likely?) Cueball just says this out loud (he could even roll something other that is not a bomb in under the bed) and maybe he himself makes the loud FWOOOSH sound to represent the bomb going off. Then he would be telling an outright lie and that would be rated as "Pants on Fire!" as well. |
− | + | The fact that PolitiFact seems to yell it could be interpreted to fit better with real pants on fire, but if Cueball tries so desperately to "smoke" her out, that he lies about a smoke bomb, she might also choose to yell "PANTS ON FIRE!" out loud. Maybe it is intended that both interpretations should be possible. | |
− | It may be a coincidence, but PolitiFact.com was {{w|PolitiFact.com#Reception| | + | It may be a coincidence, but the fact that PolitiFact.com was {{w|PolitiFact.com#Reception|rewarded}} the {{w|Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting}} in 2009 for work done already in their first full year of work (after it was started in August 2007), and that this comic was released right after [[1711: Snapchat]] that mocks the strange prize categories of the {{w|Pulitzer Prize}} seems related. National Reporting is probably also not one of the best known categories, although it may rank above the [[1711: Snapchat|Pulitzer Prize for Snapchat]]. |
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==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[Megan with messy morning hair | + | :[Megan walks around and rubs her eyes with messy morning hair] |
:Megan: I did ''not'' sleep well last night. | :Megan: I did ''not'' sleep well last night. | ||
− | :[A woman with hair like Megan (but a bit longer) wearing a white hat with brim and a small | + | :[A woman with hair like Megan (but a bit longer) wearing a white hat with brim and a small card attached to the hat (like a press card) crawls up on the pane of an open window, with a four split window, that has been slid up over the top part of the window. She claims she is from the project PolitiFact.com by starting every sentence by saying PolitiFact which she throughout the comic says in a way so it is written in the color and style of the PolitiFact.com logo, i.e. blue for ''Politi'' and red for ''Fact''. Megan has just walked past the window and has turned to look at the woman, still holding one hand up (after having rubbed her eyes). Her hair is still messy.] |
− | :PolitiFact: <span style="color: | + | :PolitiFact: <span style="color: blue;">Politi</span><span style="color: red;">Fact</span> says ''mostly true!'' |
:Megan: Oh no... | :Megan: Oh no... | ||
− | :[In | + | :[In this frame-less panel Cueball is walking right, while Megan, arms stretched out and hair flowing behind her, runs by him chasing the PolitiFact woman who has entered the room, now running with a hand up to hold her hat in place, as her hair also flows behind her.] |
:Cueball: Not again. Get out of here, PolitiFact! | :Cueball: Not again. Get out of here, PolitiFact! | ||
:Megan: I '''''swear''''' I locked that window. | :Megan: I '''''swear''''' I locked that window. | ||
− | :PolitiFact: <span style="color: | + | :PolitiFact: <span style="color: blue;">Politi</span><span style="color: red;">Fact</span> says: ''False!'' |
− | :[Cueball and Megan | + | :[Cueball and Megan are standing in a bedroom at the foot of a well made bed (with two pillows, and the bedsheet drawn tight around the bed and folded over so it lies in two layers just before the pillows). They are looking down under the bed where PolitiFact hides in the shadow of the bed. Politifact's voice emanates from a starburst at the edge of the shadow.] |
:Cueball: You can't stay under there forever. | :Cueball: You can't stay under there forever. | ||
− | :PolitiFact (voice from under bed): <span style="color: | + | :PolitiFact (voice from under bed): <span style="color: blue;">Politi</span><span style="color: red;">Fact</span> says: ''False!'' |
:Megan: Nobody likes you, Politifact. | :Megan: Nobody likes you, Politifact. | ||
− | :PolitiFact | + | :PolitiFact: <span style="color: blue;">Politi</span><span style="color: red;">Fact</span> says: ''Mostly true!'' |
{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] | ||
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
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[[Category:Politics]] | [[Category:Politics]] |