We’ve made the journey out of the Industrial Age and straight into the Information Age. The world is at our fingertips. We no longer have to rely on the traditional media sources. We can bypass TV and radio completely and simply plug in online. If we want to know anything — anything at all — we need only to ask Google. 
On the World Wide Web, no one is an outcast. If you have an interest in something, chances are that you can find a group or forum related to it. Feeling a little lonely and need some human activity? Jump on your social networks. Bored and need to waste your time away with some mindless entertainment? Jump on YouTube. There is no doubt that the Internet has forever changed the way we communicate and spend our time.
And it’s also changed the way we get our news and information. Newspapers are dying, fighting to savor their final breath. Honestly, who uses them anymore, and why would anyone want to, for reasons other than nostalgia? Now, anyone can become a news source. Start a blog, build a trust, break a few stories — BAM! You’re a reporter.
There is something both cool and disturbing about this. It’s easier than ever for some idiot to spread fallacies, whether intentional or unintentional. There are so many methods for doing so: blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc. You can easily find outlets online that match your worldview. Sometimes it seems that rather than tell the truth, some people are telling what others want to hear.
For a great example, look at politics. Every time a new bill is presented, there are so many conflicting stories about the consequences of its passage. One side tells you this, while the other side tells you that. For every bit of information, there are thousands of bits of misinformation. So while we are in the Information Age, we are also in the (Mis)Information Age.
Just look at healthcare reform. No one could agree on what its passage would mean for everyday American citizens. And people still can’t. To call ourselves responsible citizens, we should read the reform and make up our own minds. But let’s be honest, that ain’t gonna happen. Sure, this stuff was going on well before the popularity of the Internet, but there’s no doubt that the evolution of the Internet has intensified it.
Who can you trust with information today? More and more, it’s feeling as if you can trust no one. I hate to sound skeptical, but I am. And I think we all should be.
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