# The study of ignorance **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 16, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293 "2016-02-16T20:58:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/1 "2016-02-16T20:58:08Z")
I came across [this article](http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160105-the-man-who-studies-the-spread-of-ignorance) on the BBC and thought it most appropriate for this message board. > [@](#): > > How do people or companies with vested interests spread ignorance and obfuscate knowledge? Georgina Kenyon finds there is a term which defines this phenomenon. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/2 "2016-02-16T22:40:35Z")
The article states that vested interests, such as the tobacco industry, will use doubt as their tool, fostering confusion and doubt to proliferate ignorance to keep their causes acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2016, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/3 "2016-02-16T23:31:27Z")
I think this is of more general interest than just a board issue. Moved to MPSIMS from ATMB. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/4 "2016-02-17T22:39:43Z")
Sheesh, we’ve already been using a suitable term for years: [FUD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear,_uncertainty_and_doubt) for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” It’s stock-in-trade for Microsoft. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2016, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/5 "2016-02-17T23:18:52Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Sheesh, we’ve already been using a suitable term for years: [FUD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear,_uncertainty_and_doubt) for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” It’s stock-in-trade for Microsoft. The term ‘denialism’ is also in widespread use. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2016, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/6 "2016-02-18T00:50:09Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Sheesh, we’ve already been using a suitable term for years: [FUD](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear,_uncertainty_and_doubt) for “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” It’s stock-in-trade for Microsoft. But they really took that from IBM, where it had been current for decades. As they said in the 1960’s-70’s, “no purchasing manager ever got fired for recommending IBM”. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/7 "2016-02-19T01:23:34Z")
One thing that struck me was that they claimed that both parties spread ignorance, but didn’t give any example of the Dems doing it, only of Donald Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/8 "2016-02-19T02:43:17Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > One thing that struck me was that they claimed that both parties spread ignorance, but didn’t give any example of the Dems doing it, only of Donald Trump. Donald Trump _is_ the ignorance spread by the Democratic party. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/9 "2016-02-19T04:28:26Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > One thing that struck me was that they claimed that both parties spread ignorance, but didn’t give any example of the Dems doing it, only of Donald Trump. When you get high enough on Broderism, you don’t need any evidence of both sides doing it to convince you that both sides do it and, therefore, vote Republican. Broderism: Not Even Once ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/10 "2016-02-19T13:21:36Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > The article states that vested interests, such as the tobacco industry, will use doubt as their tool, fostering confusion and doubt to proliferate ignorance to keep their causes acceptable. For those interested, I recommend watching [Merchants of Doubt.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchants_of_Doubt_(film)) Many troubling industries are highlighted, and their practices include not just the sewing of doubt, but the outright deflection of blame. One good example is the tobacco industry’s deflection of blame for household fires: “it’s not the cigarettes, it’s the flammable furniture people fall asleep on,” which then resulted in upholstery filled with [toxic flame retardant chemicals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brominated_flame_retardant) that have been showing up in breast milk. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/11 "2016-02-19T20:58:11Z")
The bit about the flame resistant furniture is an example of harm reduction. e.g. “We can’t stop smokers, so let’s stop the harm they do.” And it’s not really a bad approach to public health issues. When flame retardant furniture first started, it was assumed impossible to slow down the smoking juggernaut. Times have changed and we’ve come a long way (baby!) in reducing smoking. But we still have millions of smokers. So we’ll still have thousands of upholstery fires absent fire retardant furniture. The rest of the story about how the particular fire retardant materials got approved and then mandated is a story up there with Upton Sinclair & the slaughterhouses. Pure concentrated evil. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/12 "2016-02-19T21:18:56Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > The bit about the flame resistant furniture is an example of harm reduction. > > e.g. “We can’t stop smokers, so let’s stop the harm they do.” And it’s not really a bad approach to public health issues. It’s appropriate for some issues, but in this case it was the cigarette mfrs who were pushing a solution that involved not reducing cigarette consumption - and somehow we accepted it. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2016, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/13 "2016-02-19T22:44:37Z")
I like the fact that **Agnotology** , “the study of wilful acts to spread confusion and deceit, usually to sell a product or win favour,” sounds a lot like the name of a US vice-president who was a master of it. ---
**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2016, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/14 "2016-02-20T04:41:16Z")
interesting article. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2016, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/15 "2016-02-21T23:08:52Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > It’s appropriate for some issues, but in this case it was the cigarette mfrs who were pushing a solution that involved not reducing cigarette consumption - and somehow we accepted it. Given that smoking is still prevalent even after a massive campaign to adjust attitudes about smoking, I think the assumption that eliminating smoking was unreasonable was valid. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2016, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/16 "2016-02-21T23:28:32Z")
Apparently the word is “Agnotology”. Orwell also touched on this theme in Nineteen Eighty-Four with “Newspeak” and “doublethink”. Now granted the Ministry of Truth had control over all communications, but the principle is basically the same. Controlling opinion by altering the definitions and context by which the conversation is structured in such a manner as to sow doubt, discontent and appeal to “common sense”. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2016, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-study-of-ignorance/746293/17 "2016-02-22T01:30:49Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Apparently the word is “Agnotology”. > Orwell also touched on this theme in Nineteen Eighty-Four with “Newspeak” and “doublethink”. Now granted the \*\*Ministry of Truth \*\*had control over all communications, but the principle is basically the same. Controlling opinion by altering the definitions and context by which the conversation is structured in such a manner as to sow doubt, discontent and appeal to “common sense”. Bolding mine. You misspelled “Fox News”. 😃