The rapid globalization of the 21st century caused the emergence of distinctive characteristics of modern times. The major change in this respect is attributed to the development of technologies, especially to the emergence of the Internet. In 2021, 4.6 billion people had access to the Internet worldwide (Johnson, 2021), so almost everyone could express his or her opinion about any acute topic. For this reason, Chareonwongsak (2002) sees the emergence of a multidimensional view of truth. The goal of a thoughtful Internet user is not to find necessary information but to sort the relevant one from random speculations. This trait is seen in Singapore’s reality, where the users of messengers and social media can spread fake information about vaccination and coronavirus.
The fact that thousands of millions of people almost live on social media provoked many debates about the future implications of such a process. Eveleth (2019) claims that “often consumers don’t have much power of selection at all”. Indeed, many people, especially the modern generation, lost their ability to identify the truth from lies. Chareonwongsak (2002) suggests that the right way for state agencies to act is to try to direct public opinion in the right direction. Although freedom of speech and expression should be protected, the state has tools to deliver and explain verified information about the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, in the US, ‘big tech’ companies agreed to market unscientific comments and opinions with a special ‘fact check’ button. In the case of the Singaporean government, special state agencies can monitor social media with the aim of finding common patterns of misinformation. After that, the government can publish statements or publish videos explaining why the prevalent social media agenda is incorrect.
References
Chareonwongsak, K. (2002). Globalization and technology: how will they change society?. Technology in Society, 24(3), 191-206. Web.
Eveleth, R. (2019). The biggest lie tech people tell themselves — and the rest of us. Vox. Web.
Johnson, J. (2021). The worldwide digital population as of January 2021. Statista. Web.