This book discusses the media, beliefs, the news, the Internet, etc. but it should not be seen as yet another critique of the media system, exploring with indignant fascination the idea of a machination against truth set up to serve a society of domination. These kinds of theories, whether they pertain to conspiracy theories or, more subtly, to a self-styled "e;critical"e; way of thinking, have always seemed to be the expression of a form of intellectual puerility. This is not to say that attempts at manipulating opinions do not occur, or that our world is free from compromised principles, or indeed corruption; far from it, but none of this is the key issue. In fact, reality can somehow be even more unsettling than those myths, however sophisticated they may be, that envisage the media system hand-in-hand with industry, science, and so forth, all in agreement so as to lead the "e;people"e; away from the truth. It is more unsettling because the processes described in this book and that allow falsehood and dubiousness to take hold of the public sphere are boosted by the development of IT, the workings of our minds, and the very nature of democracy. And finally, it is more unsettling because we are all responsible for what is going to happen to us.

This book discusses the media, beliefs, the news, the Internet, etc. but it should not be seen as yet another critique of the media system, exploring with indignant fascination the idea of a machination against truth set up to serve a society of domination. These kinds of theories, whether they pertain to conspiracy theories or, more subtly, to a self-styled "critical" way of thinking, have always seemed to be the expression of a form of intellectual puerility. This is not to say that attempts at manipulating opinions do not occur, or that our world is free from compromised principles, or indeed corruption; far from it, but none of this is the key issue.In fact, reality can somehow be even more unsettling than those myths, however sophisticated they may be, that envisage the media system hand-in-hand with industry, science, and so forth, all in agreement so as to lead the "people" away from the truth. It is more unsettling because the processes described in this book and that allow falsehood and dubiousness to take hold of the public sphere are boosted by the development of IT, the workings of our minds, and the very nature of democracy. And finally, it is more unsettling because we are all responsible for what is going to happen to us.

Preface viiIntroduction ixChapter 1. More is Less: Mental Avarice and Mass Information 11.1. The revolution of the cognitive market 11.2. Amplification of the confirmation bias 61.3. The Seattle affair 91.3.1. The Wason experiment 101.4. The theorem of information credulity 141.5. Filter bubbles 17Chapter 2. Why Does the Internet Side with Dubious Ideas? 192.1. The utopia of the knowledge society and the empire of beliefs 192.2. The ditherer's problem 202.3. Competition between belief and knowledge on the Internet 232.4. Psychokinesis 272.5. The Loch Ness Monster 272.6. Aspartame 282.7. Crop circles 282.8. Astrology 292.9. Overview of resutls 302.10. How can we explain these results? 302.11. The Titanic syndrome 312.12. When Olson's paradox plays against knowledge 342.13. Charles Fort, his life, and his works in a few words 362.14. Fort products: argumentative mille-feuilles 382.15. The sharing of the arguments of conviction 402.16. A Fortean product in the making: Michael Jackson's fake death 422.17. When Fort reinforces Olson 442.18. Would you believe it! 462.19. It is all in the Bible, all of it 492.20. The transparency paradox 522.21. A shorter incubation period 56Chapter 3. Competition Serves the Truth, Excessive Competition Harms It 613.1. Michael Jackson's son, abused by Nicolas Sarkozy 613.2. A "prisoner's dilemma" kind of situation 633.3. Presidential unfaithfulness and the burnt Koran 663.4. The IRC curve (information reliability/competition) 72Chapter 4. What Can Be Done? From the Democracy of the Gullible to the Democracy of Enlightenment 774.1. The hope of the astrophysicist 774.2. The bad education 804.3. When gullibility looks like intelligence 834.4. The sum of imperfections 884.5. Toward cognitive demagogy 934.6. How to keep the illusion scholar inside us in check 964.7. Declaration of mental independence 984.8. The fourth power 1024.9. A new form of scientific communication 1044.10. A new militancy 106Conclusion 109Bibliography 111Index 121