When judging people or voting, context is crucial — and maddeningly easy to omit.

When judging people or voting, context is crucial — and maddeningly easy to omit.

In a tweet stream, comedian Greg Larson brutally manipulates context to make evil people seem defensible. It’s a revealing satirical exercise in the crucial role of context — and a good way to remind ourselves of how crucial it is as we make important decisions. Here’s Larsen’s original tweet, which people took as a challenge….

Policing Trump’s (or anybody’s) tweets: the problem is context
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Policing Trump’s (or anybody’s) tweets: the problem is context

Donald Trump tweeted that mail-in ballots in California would lead to fraud. Twitter added a content warning on his tweets. If you think this is the start of Twitter fact-checking tweets, you’re wrong. It can’t. The problem is context. Let’s review what actually happened. Here’s what Trump tweeted: Twitter did something it rarely does: included…

With Hurricane Harvey approaching, the Weather Channel wastes copy on weather porn

With Hurricane Harvey approaching, the Weather Channel wastes copy on weather porn

Hurricane Harvey looks like a devastating storm. But with the media deploying superlatives so frequently, is there any capacity for alarm left for this actual emergency? I analyze the lead hurricane article from The Weather Channel for precision, clarity, and effectiveness. The lesson here: context is crucial when describing a potential disaster. Start with this:…