###### tags: `CDA`

## Wiki Tutorial
# Reflection on [Agnotology and Epistemological Fragmentation](https://points.datasociety.net/agnotology-and-epistemological-fragmentation-56aa3c509c6b)
[Danah Boyd](https://www.danah.org/) is a Partner Researcher at Microsoft Research and the founder of Data and Society

### Introduction
On April 17, 2019, Danah Boyd spoke about Agnotology and Epistemolgy Fragmentation at the Digital Public Library of America conference (DPLAfest). She addresses her audience as librarians and mentions how she loves that her audience is committed to making knowledge easily accessible. She explains that the internet quickly became a tool to inform people, however, she also explains that eventually, this same tool became a virus.
### Terms
Danah Boyd begins her argument by introducing two main terms. The two terms she uses are: **epistemology**, which she describes as "how we know what we know", and **agnotology**, which describes as "the strategic and purposeful production of ignorance" and is used as a "tool of oppression by the powerful".
### Data Voids and Media Manipulation
The internet has become a place where it is difficult to decide whether the information you see is trustworthy information. A lot of the knowledge that comes from the internet is purposefully published to deceive or manipulate people into believing. There may be instances where a topic is highly searched for but there are low levels of credibility. As people search for these topics to gain knowledge, they may likely come across untrustworthy information. Danah Boyd describes that "the powerful" may seed agnotology by manipulating the information that people receive. Many people tend to believe the first thing they read simply because they are unwilling to dig deeper into a topic and find credible sources for their information. This creates waves of misinformation that creates doubt amongst people. For example, Danah Boyd mentions how if you search for Social Justice on YouTube the first thing you see if a beautifully crafted video by PragerU titled "[What is Social Justice?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtBvQj2k6xo)".

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rtBvQj2k6xo" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

This video may seem like a great source of information for people wanting to learn about social justice, however, Danah explains that the video suggests that social justice is not real and is a manufactured attempt to suppress you. This is just one example, but the internet is full of other examples like this. We are now at the point where you can't expect people to be well informed simply because there is all the information you may need on the internet with credible sources to back that information. While the information for the public may be there, the possibility of the public being misinformed or manipulated is equally there.

Danah Boyd has done a fantastic job shedding light on this issue while emphasizing the severity of this widespread issue. It is important to take this all in and be cautious when searching for information because I believe the first thing one should focus on is being a well-informed citizen. The information is easily accessible, one's duty is to ensure to steer away from ignorance, be aware, and strive to be well informed.

-------------------
## Image and Video of Positano, Amalfi Coast, Italy

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/76lAXtHr3mo" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>