We aim to best address misinformation

Mark Twain famously (though perhaps falsely) said that you should never let the truth get in the way of a good story. Especially when the story in question is a dramatic rewriting of human history that has long-standing ties to racist ideology, as Daniel Sandweiss, president of the Society for American Archeology, points out. , archaeologists may wish to disagree.

This story claims that the well-known ancient civilizations of Eurasia, Africa, and the Americas drew inspiration from a mysterious advanced culture that existed before them all. Archaeologists are convinced that such a civilization never existed, but they also acknowledge that convincing believers to reject this story will be a difficult task.

But as we explore in our interview with archaeologist Flint Dibble, “Archaeologists Fighting Claims of Advanced Lost Civilizations,” they have a winning strategy in the form of “truth sandwiches.” You may have found it. In this method of argumentation, archaeologists begin by discussing actual information: what their research has revealed about the past. Next, they tackle disinformation. In this case, explain that the facts leave no room for this lost civilization, then return to the real information and re-emphasize it.

The truth sandwich gained popularity after it was formulated by linguist George Lakoff in 2018. It’s tempting to think that truth sandwiches can persuade viewers to abandon their belief in false narratives. But can it be done? Of course, the best way to find out is to conduct a controlled experiment. The first such studies are currently being conducted, and the results present a mixed picture. The truth sandwich appears to be valid in certain contexts, but not in others, and different ways of constructing the argument are more persuasive.

Although these contradictory results may seem problematic, they are actually evidence of scientific research being conducted. This process involves testing ideas and refining hypotheses based on new data. Only with this approach can we actually discover the best way to deal with misinformation. In other words, science should never allow a good story to get in the way of the truth.