Episode 486: The Gospel and Fake News with Love Thy Neighborhood

A recent survey found that 49 percent of pastors reported conspiracy theories were spreading within their congregations. This is especially prevalent within evangelical communities. Although evangelicals are supposed to be known as people of the “good news”—which is what the word “evangelical” literally means—in many places they’ve become the largest consumers and spreaders of “fake news.” In this special episode co-produced with the Love Thy Neighborhood podcast, Skye Jethani and Jesse Eubanks take a closer look at the origins and impact of fake news. How we should define what’s “fake”, why it’s become such a problem, and what can Christians do about it.

Love Thy Neighborhood podcast: https://lovethyneighborhood.org/ltnpodcast/ Holy Post website: https://www.holypost.com 0:00 - Intro 2:04 - War of the Worlds 7:40 - What is fake news? https://www.newsguardtech.com/special-reports/special-report-2020-engagement-analysis/ https://lifewayresearch.com/2021/01/26/half-of-u-s-protestant-pastors-hear-conspiracy-theories-in-their-churches/ https://guides.lib.umich.edu/fakenews 10:25 - Fake news in the church https://www.businessinsider.com/pastors-quit-after-qanon-radicalize-congregation-2021-3 12:01 - Follow the money https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/abs/partisan-polarization-is-the-primary-psychological-motivation-behind-political-fake-news-sharing-on-twitter/3F7D2098CD87AE5501F7AD4A7FA83602 23:17 - Episode sponsors With God Daily: http://withgoddaily.com The Movie Proposal: https://www.themovieproposal.com 25:35 - Technology Jason Thacker: https://jasonthacker.com https://news.mit.edu/2018/study-twitter-false-news-travels-faster-true-stories-0308 31:03 - Reclaiming truth https://www.allsides.com https://www.businessinsider.com/christians-are-often-victims-of-conspiracy-theories-health-falsehoods-2021-4