Read this full article at FT Strategies
I might have been naïve and impressionable — in my defense, most 11-year-olds are — but a 1988 Brazilian newspaper advert shaped my view of the importance of context. Narrated in a suitably ominous voice, it listed Hitler’s pre-war economic record before concluding: “It's possible to tell a lot of lies by telling only the truth.”
The ad went on to win the Golden Lion at Cannes. Its recognition shows how the concept of media as a bastion of credibility and holy provider of context resonated in more optimistic times, before “mainstream” became a demeaning qualifier.
The mention of mis- and disinformation (MisDis for short) brings a dark cloud over industry conversations. There is much sighing and head shaking. There is the quoting of surveys showing how many people get their news from influencers, or how “news avoiders” are an increasingly important and hard-to-reach segment.
