2020年10月8日 星期四

On Tech: False rumors often start at the top

Powerful people must now anticipate how their words might be twisted into weapons online.

False rumors often start at the top

Brenna Murphy

We know that false information spreads online like the world’s worst game of telephone.

But we don’t talk enough about the role of people in charge who say too little or the wrong things at important moments, creating conditions for misinformation to flourish.

Think about the recent rumors and outrage that flew around President Trump’s health, the wildfires in Oregon and the message of a Netflix film. Ill-considered communication from those at the top — including the president himself — made cycles of bogus information and misplaced anger even worse.

Every word that powerful people say matters. It may not be fair, but they must now anticipate how their words might be twisted — intentionally or not — into weapons in the online information war.

For one example, look at Oregon, where a tweet and other poorly communicated information from the police contributed to bogus rumors that left-wing activists deliberately started wildfires.

“We ask you to demonstrate peacefully and without the use of fire,” the police in Portland posted. There was no evidence that protesters were setting fires, but people seized on this and other odd or ambiguous official information as evidence that left-wing provocateurs at the Portland protests were responsible for wildfires.

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Local officials, including the Chamber of Commerce in Sioux Falls, S.D., also spread false rumors over the summer that left-wing protesters were headed to their town to start trouble.

None of this was true, but truth doesn’t matter in internet information soup. Wrong or ill-considered official statements can confirm what people already suspected.

The same thing happened when Netflix unleashed a clueless marketing campaign to promote a film called “Cuties.” My colleague described the movie as a nuanced exploration of gender and race and how society dangerously blurs the lines between girl empowerment and sexual exploitation. But Netflix’s promotional materials, including an image of tween girls posing in dance clothes, gave the false impression that the movie sexualized children.

In short, Netflix’s communication projected the idea that its own movie was the opposite of what it really was. Some politicians, parents and a Texas prosecutor called the film child pornography and pushed Netflix to ban it. Outcry about the movie has been amplified by supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory, the false idea that top Democrats and celebrities are behind a global child-trafficking ring.

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I want to be clear: There are always people who twist information to their own ends. People might have misplaced blame for the wildfires or dumbed down the complexities of “Cuties” even if official communications had been perfectly clear from the jump. But by not choosing their words and images carefully, the people in charge provided fuel for misinformation.

We see over and over again that unclear, wrong or not enough information from the beginning can be hard to overcome.

Conspiracy theories about President Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis and health condition in the last week were fueled by people close to the president misspeaking or obfuscating what was happening. And the White House’s history of spreading false information contributed to a lack of trust in the official line. (My colleague Kevin Roose also wrote about this fueling wild speculation about the president’s health.)

Nature abhors a vacuum, and the internet turns a vacuum into conspiracies. All of us have a role to play in not contributing to misinformation, but experts and people in positions of power shoulder even more responsibility for not creating the conditions for bogus information to go wild.

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Facebook is afraid. That’s good.

Facebook is expanding a blackout period for political and issue-related ads in the United States for days or longer after Election Day — a period in which officials might still be counting votes in the presidential election and other contests.

I want to make two points. First, Facebook’s ads blackout might be smart or it might be ineffectual, but it is definitely small fish.

Look at your Facebook feed. A lot of the overheated and manipulative garbage you see did not pay to be there. Those posts are there because they make people angry or happy, and Facebook’s computer systems circulate the stuff that generates an emotional reaction.

Yes, it’s extra galling if Facebook makes money directly from lies and manipulations. That’s a big reason some civil rights groups and company employees have called on internet companies to take a hard line against political ads or to ban them. But I suspect that most of the stuff that might rile people up if votes are still being counted after Election Day will be unpaid posts, including from President Trump — not ads.

Second, I am going to say something nice about Facebook. With the company’s ban on groups or pages that identify with the QAnon conspiracy announced this week and its gradually broadening crackdown on attempted voter intimidation and premature declarations of election victory, Facebook is showing courage in its convictions.

This is different. Too often the company myopically fixates on technical rules, not principles, and caves to its self-interest.

Facebook is taking a different tack in part because it doesn’t want to be blamed — as the company was four years ago — if there is confusion or chaos around the election. I love that Facebook is a little bit afraid.

It’s healthy for the company to ask itself: What if things go wrong? That’s something Facebook has often failed to do with disastrous consequences.

Before we go …

  • We are all conspiracists now: Kevin Roose, a technology columnist for The New York Times, writes that conspiracy theories are a symptom of the broader erosion of authority in the internet age. “How easily the conspiracist’s creed — that the official narrative is always a lie, and that the truth is out there for those willing to dig for it themselves — has penetrated our national psyche,” Kevin writes.
  • LinkedIn contains multitudes: During the pandemic and protests against racial injustice, the typically blah workplace social network has become a thriving outlet for Black professionals to express both fun stuff and grief about racial discrimination and alienation on the job, Ashanti M. Martin wrote for The Times. Some LinkedIn users said the company didn’t know how to handle it.
  • Raining cash on internet video stars: A small app called Triller is trying to steal stars from TikTok by paying them for just about anything, including a helicopter for a video shoot and a leased Rolls-Royce with a “TRILLER” vanity plate, my colleague Taylor Lorenz writes. My question: How long can Triller keep spending like this?

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2020年10月7日 星期三

The T List: Five things we recommend this week

Carmen Herrera's new show, serums for your skin — and more.

Welcome to the T List, a newsletter from the editors of T Magazine. Each week, we’re sharing things we’re eating, wearing, listening to or coveting now. Sign up here to find us in your inbox every Wednesday. You can always reach us at tlist@nytimes.com.

Shop This

Textiles, Pottery and Other Exquisite Home Goods

Left: Rarities relishes colorful patterned pieces sourced from all over the world. Right: a table set with placemats by Malaika Linen and Mestiz ceramic plates and bowls.Left: Lily King. Right: Jon Pacio.

By Kerstin Czarra

T Contributor

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Before the pandemic made it dangerous to travel, the Los Angeles-based Kneeland Co. founder Joanna Williams was constantly crisscrossing the globe — visiting countries such as India, Mexico, Turkey, France, Italy and the United Kingdom as part of her job running a vintage textile library and consulting service for luxury brands and designers. Earlier this year, inspired by the artisans and makers she met along the way, Williams decided to open a shop called Rarities, which adjoins her showroom in the historic West Adams neighborhood of South Lous A. There, you’ll find a myriad of pottery, textiles and other handicrafts, from vintage ceramic Staffordshire dogs to beautiful block-print textiles by Gregory Parkinson to colorful Oaxacan flower candles, each with a story behind it. “I wanted to share that sense of discovery,” she said. When I visited Rarities not too long ago (currently, customers are allowed in by appointment only), Williams told me that she gravitates toward the obscure, showing me a papier-mâché monkey covered in vintage purple fringe, specially made for the shop by the artist Clare Crespo. (If someone wants to buy the ornate primate, Williams will commission another creature to hold court.) And there are many other exclusive finds, such as English artist Claudia Rankin’s eccentric ceramics as well as oversize wicker lampshades from Mestiz Studio in San Miguel de Allende. “It’s about finding something you can cherish,” added Williams. “I like things that leave a lasting impression.” 4767 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, kneelandco.com.

Covet This

Canali’s Anthology Celebrates Its 85th Anniversary

Looks from Canali’s spring 2021 collections.Courtesy of the brand

By Jameson Montgomery

This year, the Italian luxury men’s wear brand Canali celebrates its 85th anniversary with the release of Anthology, a digital compilation of interviews featuring family members and company staffers. Not only does the project provide fascinating insight into Canali’s meticulous design process (in one video, a seamstress explains how an unlined jacket requires more than 170 individual operations to complete), but it eschews the over-peddled “great man” theory; though individual designers can be beneficial to a brand’s identity, it’s really an army of skilled craftspeople who tirelessly work to create the perfect garment. As honorary president Eugenio Canali suggests: “Never consider yourself great, you’re always a little frog. Aim to run faster than others.” Anthology dives into the grand history of the company, discussing Canali’s early days producing raincoats for a postwar Europe as well as its embrace of the less formal men’s wear codes that dominate today. Its spring 2021 collection is another reminder that the heritage brand understands the here and now: Tailored pieces coexist with pullover knits, technical outerwear and sneakers. Indeed, what sets Canali apart in men’s wear is the exacting nature of its so-called “casual” pieces, which are not outsourced to cheaper production markets but are still made in Italy with the same care lavished on a double-breasted suit. anthology.canali.com.

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See This

Carmen Herrera’s New Exhibition in London

Carmen Herrera’s “Blues” (1991) and “Two Yellows” (1992).Photography by Andy Stagg. Courtesy of the artist and Lisson Gallery.

By Nancy Coleman

Four years ago, at the age of 101, the Cuban-American abstract artist Carmen Herrera had one of her first major solo exhibitions, at the Whitney Museum of American Art. “There’s a saying that you wait for the bus and it will come,” Herrera told T Magazine in 2015. The show brought critical acclaim to the pioneering minimalist whose oeuvre is defined by crisp lines, bold colors and geometric abstraction. Now, at 105, the artist has a new show at the private exhibition space the Perimeter in London. “Carmen Herrera: Colour Me In” features pieces — eight paintings, four works on paper and two wall-based relief sculptures — made between the mid-1980s and the early ’90s, picking up from where the Whitney exhibition left off. While the Whitney focused on Herrera’s development from her time in Paris to her first decades in New York City, where she moved in 1954 and still lives and works, the Perimeter show — as its title suggests — delves into her later experimentation with color, when Herrera shifted from more dissonant palettes to varying shades of blues or yellows layered on top of one another. “Carmen Herrera: Colour Me In” is free with a pre-booked appointment through Jan. 8, 2021, at the Perimeter, 20 Brownlow Mews, London, WC1N 2LE.

Try This

Five New Multitasking Serums That Promise

From left: Augustinus Bader’s The Face Oil, $230, augustinusbader.com; Holifrog’s Galilee Antioxidant Dewy Drop, $52, holifrog.com; The Nue Co.’s The Pill, $85, thenueco.com; Furtuna’s Skin Face & Eye Serum, $185, furtunaskin.com; Sisleÿa’s L’Integral Anti-Age La Cure, $1,200, sisley-paris.com.Courtesy of the brands

By Caitie Kelly

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An overcomplicated skin-care routine not only takes up valuable bathroom real estate but can also result in irritation when certain ingredients don’t interact well (like retinoids and vitamin C, for example). Luckily, a handful of new serums promise to multitask, ensuring a glowing complexion achieved with just one small bottle. Furtuna Skin, the skin-care brand founded by Kim Wells and Agatha Luczo, offers its Face & Eye Serum, a thin, quickly absorbed gel that, thanks to wild chicory and anchusa azurea flowers sourced from Luczo’s Sicilian farm, both lifts and de-puffs. For troubled skin, The Nue Co., a wellness brand primarily focused on supplements, has debuted The Pill — its second topical product that focuses on exfoliation, hydration and reducing inflammation. Applied once daily, the serum’s plant-derived alpha hydroxy acids gently resurface skin while CBD and caffeine calm and tighten. Meanwhile, Sisleya L’Integral Anti-Age La Cure is a luxurious (and luxuriously priced) treatment that is used over the course of a month (the length of a skin-renewal cycle) and consists of four different serums that purport to leave skin energized, smooth and with increased elasticity. Intended to be used just twice a year, the serum focuses on the repair and protection of the skin’s mitochondria, the main source of cellular energy. For a super hydrating serum that doubles as a light moisturizer, Holifrog’s Galilee Antioxidant Dewy Drop contains aloe vera juice and a trio of emollient oils as well as antioxidant ingredients such as coenzyme Q10, squalane and green tea extract. More mature complexions will soak up Augustinus Bader’s The Face Oil, which contains the brand’s patented TFC8 complex — a mix of vitamins, amino acids and synthesized molecules that aid in the skin’s ability to repair itself — in a plush blend of argan, karanja and babassu oils.

Drink This

Parcelle’s Wine Club and Pop-Up Tasting Bar

Left: the sidewalk dining at Parcelle Patio. Right: October’s Wine Drop selections.Courtesy of Parcelle

By Kristina Samulewski

T Contributor

Founded by the award-winning sommelier Grant Reynolds, the New York City wine shop Parcelle was created in response to the growing popularity of natural and organic wines. Reynolds’s selection is terrific, and shows a true commitment to sourcing diverse wines from world-class producers. Parcelle also has a new delivery service called Wine Drop, where for $95 a month, three distinct wines tied together by a theme are mailed directly to your home each month. October’s selection features bottles from young vintners who have collaborated with friends or lovers, including Vivanterre’s Red Gamay, a natural wine by the fashion designer Rosie Assoulin, her husband, Max Assoulin, as well as the winemaker duo Patrick Bouju and Justine Loiseau. New York locals curious to try the offerings before committing can visit Parcelle’s West Village outdoor pop-up bar, Parcelle Patio, open through the end of this month. Lovingly decorated with early 20th-century French furniture sourced from upstate vintage shops, the wine bar sells 20 or so wines by the glass with rotating seasonal snacks and other small plates. Reservations require a $5 ticket purchased on Resy, the entirety of which is donated to the Roots Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides resources and financial support to the Black and Indigenous wine community. 632 on Hudson, 632 Hudson St., New York City; parcellewine.com.

From T’s Instagram

A Black Beachfront Community in Long Island

William Pickens III, a Sag Harbor, N.Y., resident since the 1950s.Joshua Kissi

While vacationing one summer in the late 1930s in Eastville, an area on the outskirts of Long Island’s Sag Harbor, Maude Terry came upon a 20-acre plot that faced a beach and envisioned a place where Black families could rest, raise families and simply exist without the burden of systemic oppression. Terry and her sister, Amaza Lee Meredith, brokered a deal promising to find buyers for 70 parcels of land in the area, most of which were 50 by 100 to 125 feet, and began recruiting Black families and friends to move in. In doing so, they created not only the oldest historically Black subdivision in Sag Harbor but one of the most enduring Black beachfront communities in America, which, despite the threat of developers, has now spanned multiple generations. The sisters named the community Azurest: a “heavenly peace, blue rest, blue haven,” as Meredith wrote for her sister’s eulogy. To watch the full video by Joshua Kissi, with testimonials from some of the residents who’ve summered there for much of their lives, visit @tmagazine and follow us on Instagram.

Correction: The Sept. 24 newsletter misstated the location of Lugano; it is in Switzerland, not Italy.

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