Helen Lee Bouygues Discusses ‘Fake News’ and Critical Thinking

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In theory, the fact that the internet provides virtually instantaneous access to the sum total of all human knowledge should make us smarter as a society. Unfortunately, it seems to be having the opposite effect in a lot of cases. As much information as their is out there, there is also a ton of mis-information, both incidental and intentional, and people appear to be very bad at telling the difference.

My guest for this episode of the TechSpective Podcast is Helen Lee Bouygues. Helen is a former partner with McKinsey, and is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Business School. She is the president of the Paris-based Reboot Foundation–which she established in order to elevate critical thinking and to promote richer, more reflective forms of thought in schools, homes, and businesses.

One of her primary focuses has been on the intersection of misinformation, “fake news,” and people’s internet usage. The Reboot Foundation believes that the “fake news” crisis is ultimately a crisis of media literacy, and that more people need to develop the critical thinking skills necessary to be savvy, smart consumers of news online.

Check out the full episode for more insights from Helen about the challenges of critical thinking and what we need to do to be better consumers of online information. I also recommend that you check out the Reboot Foundation website and explore some of the valuable resources we discuss during the podcast.

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