Tim Berners-Lee proposes trustworthiness labels for internet sites, page 1

posted on Feb, 26 2009 @ 03:24 PM

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There is a thread in Breaking News about this story, highlighting the Big Pharma connection. But I think it deserves a thread in here also, talking about what this means in light of other recent news pieces about "conspiracy sites", even trying to link them with mental illness including schizophrenia.

"Sir Tim" is Tim Berners-Lee, "founder" of the Internet.

Sir Tim told BBC News that there needed to be new systems that would give websites a label for trustworthiness once they had been proved reliable sources.

"On the web the thinking of cults can spread very rapidly and suddenly a cult which was 12 people who had some deep personal issues suddenly find a formula which is very believable," he said. "A sort of conspiracy theory of sorts and which you can imagine spreading to thousands of people and being deeply damaging."

Sir Tim and colleagues at the World Wide Web consortium had looked at simple ways of branding websites - but concluded that a whole variety of different mechanisms was needed.

Please visit the link provided for the complete story.

BBC Source

Breaking News Forum thread

MemoryShock

posted on Feb, 26 2009 @ 03:35 PM

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To inflect a bit of conspiracy theory into this, such a rating system could also deter interest and subsequent awareness of valid conspiracy theories.

We have broken a couple of valid news stories and have held relevant discussion on many others - but would we risk being officially labeled as untrustworthy because of the many baser threads we host?

Where would valid discussion of MK-ULTRA and the B6 re-categorization (among many others) be found if it weren't for ATS?

Frankidealist35

posted on Feb, 26 2009 @ 04:09 PM

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I'm really upset right now. These pharmaceutical companies will do ANYTHING to keep people from knowing the truth-- even denying what's already well known among many. Those who deny explode... I hope that some of these people go away with the financial collapse sometimes.

americandingbat

posted on Mar, 1 2009 @ 08:07 AM

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More conspiracy=insanity media coverage, this time from the blogosphere and this time specific to ATS

WeekendWeb

Once I actually followed this link it turned out to be a spoof, but I'll leave it here anyway:
I hope this post doesn't turn into too long a collection of links this morning:
Anti-Government Phobia as mental illness?

edit to announce spoofiness

[edit on 3/1/09 by americandingbat]