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The Fight A Rumor By Jesse Signal Essay

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“How to Fight a Rumor” by Jesse Signal is an essay that gives information about rumors and how to fight them. The essay uses research from rumor researchers and gives different examples of how people deal with rumors. It also views rumors on a psychological level and looks into why people spread them. In the essay, Jesse Signal informs the reader why people spread rumors, how to fight rumors, and gives examples of how people deal with rumors. Jesse Signal starts off the essay by looking at two opposing ways that the presidential candidates in 2008 dealt with rumors. Obama chose an odd way of fighting rumors whereas John McCain used the way people believe rumors should be fought. Obama made a website that stated the rumors and then debunked them after by stating facts. McCain’s way of fighting rumors during his campaign was to ignore the rumors completely. Signal then states that new studies show that Obama’s approach to fighting rumors is better than McCain’s approach. Then, Jesse Signal informs the reader about why people spread them rumors. Through research, it has been found that people do not spread rumors for gossip; they spread them to uncover the truth about something. He also claims that people spread rumors to boost their own importance within society. Spreading rumors allow people to help friends by warning them and allows people to build up their reputation to gain attention. Rumors are more likely to spread when they are negative things about high status

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