As Seen on Twitter

Do you remember the days when companies would advertise their products "As Seen on TV"?   Because it was on TV it was supposed to be credible.  It was brought to my attention by a credible source that my previous blog post about the Chinese word for crisis was a fallacy.  I have to admit that I saw this on Twitter from a credible source (who I assume was also led astray).  Although new Internet technology can spread false information it is also as powerful at correcting inaccuracies.  Here are some links that correct the inaccuracies: straight dope and an American Sinologist.

Chris Anderson, in his book "The Long Tail", compares Encyclopedia Britannica with Wikipedia.  In a study they compared a set of articles in both sources.  They found more inaccuracies in Wikipedia than they did in Britannica.  Success for Britannica?  No.  Wikipedia was quickly updated and corrected.  The inaccuracies in Britannica remained until the next edition.