Critical Thinking Web Exchange

Ultimately, arguments are only as good as their premises.  And whether those premises are true or false comes down to the truthfulness of eyewitness experience.  When we discuss plausibility in chapter 5 of The Pocket Guide to Critical Thinking, I tell my students that before you consider a claim plausible, compare it to your honest experience.  And, if it is not based on your experience, make sure you have reasonable assurance that the claim is traceable, in a chain of honest and knowledgeable reports, to someone's first-hand experience.  Good journalists have always wrestled with this problem, and modern social media offer them new ways of getting closer to the truth, as this discussion by reporter Paul Lewis shows.  It also shows why it is not a good idea to believe a claim just because the authorities said so, especially when those authorities have a motive to mislead.